Bump
by LemonStar
Summary: ..Daryl/Beth.. AU - no zombies. As the building manager in a newly renovated apartment building, it's Daryl Dixon's job to make sure that things are working properly for all of the tenants. It's his job to unclog the shower drain in apartment A2. It's not his job to wonder where her boyfriend or husband is when she asks if he can help her put a baby crib together.
1. Chapter 1

**I honestly feel so bad whenever my muse comes up with a new idea because I can't think of anything else until I start to write it, but I don't know how to turn the muse off. Also, thank you for being patient with me and my updates. The promotion I got at work is making my days pretty busy, but I'm trying to write whenever I have a spare moment. Thank you for your continued love and support of my stories.**

* * *

…

 **One.**

"Seven, eight, nine," the teller counts while lying out the ten dollar bills in front of Beth on the other side of the glass. "Ten-thousand, nine hundred. Would you like an envelope, Beth?"

Beth nods. "Please."

She goes to get her one large enough as Beth looks at the neat piles of bills in front of her. She has never seen so much money all at once before and it's a little overwhelming and a little frightening. But Beth can only hope that it will actually be enough. And it should – at least for a while; for a while until she finds out where she's going and she is able to get herself a job.

Her older sister, Maggie, has always called her frugal, but right now, Beth thinks that that's the best thing she could have ever been. When she was eight-years-old, her mom took her to the bank to open up her savings account and since then, every cent earned from babysitting and later, from teaching piano lessons went safely away, never to be touched. Upon graduation from high school, she received money from family and most of it went into the savings account as well. Her maternal grandparents gave her the same present they had given Maggie and their brother, Shawn, and helped pay for college. Beth had stayed in state for the low tuition and she worked as a waitress through the four years, allowing her to graduate with no money owed back and a bit more in her savings account.

Her job out of a college as a secretary at an office – and still living at home on the farm with her parents – has helped with expenses and more money is being able to be tucked away.

"What the hell are you saving it all for?" Maggie had asked her once they had stopped by the bank on the way to the mall – Maggie to check on the amount on her debit card and Beth to divide her pay check – half going into her checking account and the rest going into savings.

Maggie's eyes had nearly bugged from her head when she saw just how much Beth had accumulated over the years – the five digits printed in Beth's bank book staring back at her as she had snatched it to get a closer look. Maggie had never been much into saving and both sisters knew it. Their daddy had always said that money liked to burn holes through Maggie's pockets and as soon as she had any, she had to spend it.

Beth had shrugged. "For a rainy day."

And now, it isn't just raining. It's a torrential downpour and Beth is trying to keep herself from drowning in it. Thank goodness that she's always been frugal because now, she needs as much money as she can get. _He_ gave her a grand – in cash – the last time she saw him.

"Take care of it," he had said to her as if they were discussing some leftovers in the staff refrigerator that he wanted her to clean out.

At that point, Beth was still in such shock over everything, she hadn't been able to have much of a reaction to anything as her carefully constructed life fell absolutely apart, landing in pieces all around her.

But she had just taken his money and wondered if she could feel any less cheap than she did then in that moment. For everything they had done and everything that she had given him, she had only been worth a grand to him. She left without a word and she knew that she would never see him again nor speak to him. She would let him assume anything he wanted; let him think she "took care of it", because while it was painfully obvious that she was naïve, she wasn't so naïve that she didn't know what he wanted her to do.

She couldn't do that and she wouldn't.

So instead, she would leave. The idea had come to her just the night before as she laid in bed. She hadn't been able to sleep in days and her mom had finally commented on it last night, during dinner.

"When I can't sleep, I take Benadryl," Annette offered.

Beth had done her best to smile at her mom's suggestion and shook her head. "I'm alright. Just thinking about things from work."

 _To put it mildly¸_ she added to herself.

"You're too young for that, Bethy," Hershel replied.

Beth had kept quiet at that because if only her parents really knew.

Later, after the dishes were washed and drying in the rack next to the sink and her parents had settled in to watch some show on PBS, Beth had gone upstairs and drawn herself a bath. She wasn't sure how long she stayed in there – thinking of what she could possibly do – but her fingertips were wrinkled and her mom was tapping gently on the door when she finally pulled herself from the tub.

"Are you alright?" Annette asked with a furrowed brow and dark concerned eyes.

"I'm just tired," Beth answered and it was, at least, partially the truth.

She then hugged Annette long and tight and when Annette held onto her, Beth had to clasp her eyes shut to make sure that no tears leaked out. If she started crying now, she would completely break apart and she wasn't ready for her parents to know. What would they say? How would they act? She already knew. They would be so angry and so disappointed and so ashamed – especially if they ever found out who the father was.

"I think I'm going to take a personal day from work tomorrow," Beth said, still hugging her mom. "You're right. I need rest and I just haven't been getting it."

Annette gave her a squeeze and a smile. "Good."

And with that, Beth went into her bedroom and closed the door and laid awake in her bed for the rest of the night.

They will be angry that she left – of course. Angry and scared and worried. But this is for the best. It really is. And after they read the letter that she's left for them in her room, after a while when they have given their emotions a chance to calm down, they'll see it's the best. This is such a small town and it is fueled on gossip and Beth doesn't want any of the people here to think that she's a reflection of her parents.

Her parents are the best and her sins are her sins to burden alone.

"Here you go, Beth," the teller returns with her envelope and helps her place all of the money inside of it. "Do you need anything else?"

Beth looks at the thick envelope now in her hands. She has everything she needs. Her savings account now says that she has zero and everything she's ever saved in the world is now in her hands. She can't help, but drop one of her hands down to her flat stomach. Well, her entire world has now changed and it's all about this little one now. It's not this little one's fault that their mom has made such a mess of her own life. With this money, Beth is going to do everything she can do to make sure that this baby has a good life; as good a life as Beth had had, herself, before she went and mucked it all up.

"Yes," Beth tells the teller. She puts the envelope carefully into the messenger bag slung across her chest and then pulls out another envelope – this one much smaller and thinner; a second letter to her family. She slides it under the glass. "If any of my family comes here, asking about me-" Beth abruptly cuts herself off and swallows down the ball lodged in her throat. "Could you please give this to them?"

"Of course," the teller says, sliding the envelope closer to her. "Beth… is everything alright?"

Beth does her best to nod. "It will be," she responds and is amazed that to her own ears, she actually sounds almost confident.

Well, to be honest, it's not as if it can possibly get any worse.

…

She's aware of the building manager standing in the front door of the apartment, watching her, but he doesn't say anything and she can't think of anything to ask him. As long as the apartment has four walls and a roof and is in a slightly decent neighborhood, she can't ask for more than that.

Well, actually…

Beth goes to the sink in the kitchen and turns on the tap. Fresh, clear water pours out.

"I love these tiles," she finally speaks, her hand gently touching the white subway tiles beneath the cabinets.

"Thanks," the man replies and his voice is gruff as if he goes for long periods of time without using it.

Beth looks back to him. "You did the work?"

He gives a single nod. "Tyreese and Karen own this buildin' and a bunch of others around town. They're into that whole flippin' thing and I work for 'em."

Beth turns fully towards him. "But this is the one you live in full time?"

"I live in A1, right across the hall. Buildin' manager," he tells her. "If anything goes wrong in this place, you come and get me. If you wind up livin' here," he then adds.

Beth nods and looks away again. He's a tall, lean man and yet, he's wearing a tee-shirt that shows her that he definitely has muscles. His hair is dark and long and he should probably cut it, and yet, it looks good on him.

But Beth looks away before she can think of anything about him further. She honestly doesn't want to think about a man ever again.

The kitchen and living room are one room – separated with a breakfast counter. She's always dreamt of having a breakfast counter in her own place someday. She runs her hand along the smooth surface and then steps into the living room. They have used a warm yellow tile for the kitchen floor and it bleeds perfectly into the hard wood used for the floor. There is a large window on the back wall and Beth walks to it now. It overlooks a small bank of trees that is growing on the side of the apartment building. At least it's not a parking lot. _Not_ that she's being choosy. She just wants her baby to have a view of something.

It's small, but that doesn't matter because it's obvious that this man and the two owners put in plenty of time and money into the place.

Beth bites down on her bottom lip. She turns back towards the building manager. "Thank you for showing this to me."

He frowns a little. "You done? You don't wanna see the bedrooms or bathroom?" He asks.

She just shakes her head. "No, that's alright. Thank you and I'm sorry to have wasted your time." She begins stepping forward, but he remains standing in the doorway.

He tilts his head ever so slightly to the side – as if he's studying her – and Beth gets the strangest feeling that he can actually read her mind right now. It's a little unnerving even if she knows that that's not possible and that he's not actually reading her mind.

"You ain't wastin' anything," he says. "Come on. It'll just take a moment."

"No, that's really alright. I'm just going to keep looking," she says and then her eyes can't help, but take one more look around. It really is such a beautiful apartment – especially with the way the sun is pouring in through the back window right now.

She wonders if her parents have read the letter – or letters – yet.

 _Of course_ they've read them. Beth left this morning while her parents had been at the church, planning the church's carnival coming up in just a few weeks and after packing her car and stopping at the bank, drove until she found herself in the far southwest corner of the state – nearly into Florida. She thought herself lost a few times until she reminded herself that she didn't even know where she was going so she couldn't very well get lost. A random two-lane road, surrounded by woods and farm fields and she found herself in Scott, Georgia – a small – smaller than small – town that she had never heard of before – and she knew that most people hadn't; including her own parents.

She had pleaded with them to let her go; promising that she would call them once she had gotten herself settled; once she found herself somewhere. And then, she reminded them that she was twenty-three and she would be alright.

She has only been in Scott for just an hour – having seen the apartments for rent sign almost immediately – and it's just a little bit before five. She's going to have to find a motel for the night and she's going to have to start looking for a job. She wonders how other real estate is in Scott, Georgia because even though it has just been a small amount of time, she likes the feel of this little town.

"Every buildin' in town that you can rent a room from is pretty much owned by Tyreese and Karen. So if you don't like the style of this one, you prob'ly ain't gonna like the styles of the others."

"No!" Beth rushes. "It's so beautiful here. I love everything about it."

He frowns. "But you wanna keep lookin'," he then states.

"I don't think I have the money for this place. I just have a little bit saved and I still have to buy furniture and I'm looking for a job-"

–and I'll have a baby to take care of in a few months, she thinks silently to herself.

"Startin' over," he gives a nod as if he's maybe done the very same thing himself. "'s 300 a month."

Beth's eyes widened. "That's all?" She can't help, but sound completely surprised.

The building manager shrugs. "Cheap cost of livin' out here." He finally steps from the doorway. "Come on. 'll show you the bedrooms and bathroom."

The rest of the apartment is just as perfect. Small bedrooms, but perfect with the same hardwood floors and the walls are painted a plain eggshell.

"Would I be able to paint?" She asks.

"Depends. You show me paint chips of what you have in mind and I'll let you know."

Beth instantly imagines warm yellows.

In the second bedroom, there is a window that overlooks the same trees that she saw from the living room window and she inspects the lock. She knows that they are in the middle of nowhere out here, but still, anyone can open up a first floor window and snatch a baby if the opportunity was there.

"How is the crime around here?" She asks, turning back towards the man as he is standing in the doorway. He doesn't make it obvious that he is, but Beth has felt his eyes on her the entire time that she's been looking around.

He shrugs. "Minimal. Mostly family stuff and then usually on weekends, you get the dumb-ass drunks gettin' arrested from the bar for startin' fights and bein' idiots."

"And the school?" Beth asks.

His eyebrow raises at that, and she wonders what he's thinking.

"Got one school for the younger kids. High school kids get bussed to the next town. Baker. We share sports teams with 'em."

Beth nods and takes one more look around the small bedroom. He gave her a grand and she fully intends to furnish this into a nursery as best as she can with that money. He may not have wanted anything to do with either of them, but Beth is going to love this baby and she is going to make sure that this baby knows that every single day of their life.

She looks back to the building manager and smiles. "Do you take cash?"

He looks at her for a moment and then smirks a little. "Prefer that way. Can't give me bounced cash." She smiled at that, feeling better than she has in days. "You wanna stay here? I'll bring the application over."

"Thank you," Beth smiles and then he's gone.

She crosses the hall towards the bedroom that she has decided will be hers.

She gets a wave of homesickness, but she shakes it off after just a moment. She is home now. And once she gets the application filled out and gives the building manager the money, she will go and begin looking for a job somewhere in this little town. She left her cell phone behind so her parents couldn't trace it and once she is a bit more settled, she will call them. She _has_ to call them. She knows that essentially running away wasn't the most mature option, but the way she can see it, it is still the only option she could possibly do.

They, of course, won't agree with her once they read her letters, but it's the best. It really is.

And Beth hopes that she will believe this completely, too, the more she tells it to herself.

She hears steps again and she turns to find that he has returned, papers in his hand.

She gives him a smile. "I don't know your name," she then realizes. "I'm Beth Greene."

She steps forward, offering him her hand. She is not going to have any man in her life for the rest of her life – the only exception being if she gives birth to son – but that doesn't mean that she can't be friendly to the building's manager and the person who she will be, hopefully, living across the hall from.

He gives the slightest of head inclines towards her. "Daryl Dixon," he says and after wiping his hand along the side of his jean-clad thigh, he shakes her hand in return. "Here's the application, but I don't really know what you can fill in. You don't have a job and you're startin' over so I'm figurin'…" he looks at her. "If you're in Scott, you don't want to be found."

Beth just stares at him.

Maybe he _can_ read her mind.

"You said you got cash?" He looks up from the papers in his hand to look at her.

Beth nods, looking at him, her stomach knotted, not daring to get her hopes up, but hoping that he is going to say what she thinks he's going to say.

Oh, wait.

No, that's not a knot.

No, no, no.

She slaps her hand over her mouth and her eyes widen. She needs the bathroom. Right this second or else, the hardwood floor will be her victim.

"I am so sorry," she manages to say right before she rushes past him.

"Wha'…" Daryl begins to say, but Beth has already burst into the bathroom he has just showed her a few minutes ago for the first time and falling to her knees, she has her morning sickness into the toilet.

Her morning sickness is usually always hitting her in the evenings. She should have been expecting this. But not right at this instant when she's trying to get an apartment. Really, little baby? You could have at least waited until I was outside and I could have thrown up in the parking lot, Beth scolds her baby. I am trying to get a roof over our heads.

Well, hopefully Daryl won't tell Tyreese and Karen about this so she can look at their other properties for rent.

Hearing a throat clearing from next to her, she almost doesn't want to lift her head. She can just imagine Daryl telling her to get out.

But nonetheless, she lifts her head. Hopefully, the town has a motel and he'll let her know how to get there before he kicks her out.

"Here."

Daryl is standing there and he's holding a can of ginger ale and a sleeve of saltine crackers.

"Might help your stomach."

Beth stares at the offering for a moment and then lifts her eyes to look up at him, standing over her. His face is completely blank, but his eyes are intense, focused on her and nothing else. She feels her face flush with embarrassment as she shyly reaches out and takes the can of soda and the crackers from his hands.

She doesn't take her eyes from him.

"I can give you three hundred dollars," she blurts out.

Daryl stares at her and after a moment, he smirks a little. "'s just ginger ale and crackers. Don't cost nearly that much."

Beth flushes the toilet and then stands up. She sets the sleeve of crackers down on the sink counter and then pops the tab of the can, taking a sip, grateful for the cold liquid pouring down her throat.

"I'm sorry," she then says after she swallows. She takes a deep breath and moves her eyes back up to his face.

Daryl is still looking at her – watching her closely – and he shrugs. "'s your apartment. You can do pretty much anything you wanna do."

…


	2. Very Important AN

The "author", Krissy Reynolds, sells Kindle books that she has "written" on Amazon. Her story _The Diner Girl_ is simply MY story, _Waiting on You_. All she has done is change the names of the characters. I have left her a review on Amazon and I have also contacted Amazon. Until this is resolved - hopefully, it can be resolved - I do not think I will be updating any of my stories.

This is not the first time someone has stolen my work, but this is the first time someone has made a profit from it and hurt and angry does not even begin to cover how I feel right now.

I am sorry to everyone who reads my stories and loves them and RESPECTS them. I am sorry that I am leaving you in a lurch like this, but having something you work so hard on to be stolen by someone who cannot take the time to think of and write their own story, it makes me feel like I never want to write again.


	3. Chapter 2

**Everyone is amazing. Seriously. The number of messages of support I received here and on Tumblr was completely overwhelming. It is humbling to know that I have so many people ready to stick up for me if I need it. Amazon contacted me on Wednesday to tell me that the page and all of her "works" are gone and people found her on Goodreads and that site has taken her down as well. I can't thank you enough for your support during this crisis.**

* * *

…

 **Two.**

He's not an idiot and he's not blind and he's also not gay. Three things his older brother, Merle, has accused him of at one time or another. He knows Beth Greene is a pretty girl. He might even take it a step further and call her beautiful. But just because she's a beautiful girl, that doesn't mean he's instantly interested in her.

The girl's running from something and whatever it is, Daryl's pretty sure he doesn't want it in his life, too. Drama's not his thing. He had too much of it for too much of his life and now, he's living somewhere quiet and he wants to keep it that way.

As long as she doesn't blare rap music and pays her rent on time, Daryl's not going to think about her. She's just the girl who lives in apartment A2, who threw up in front of him.

She's actually not the first girl to do that.

He's just washing out his coffee cup in the sink when there's a knock on his door. He assumes it's either his friend, Rick, or Tyreese, wanting to go over the plans for the latest place he and his wife, Karen, are renovating; this time, flipping a house and not just apartments. They're confident ever since it was announced that a new car parts factory is moving into Scott and will hopefully, bring a lot of people with it, looking for places to live.

He wipes his hands on a paper towel as he goes to the door and can't help, but feel a little surprised when he sees that it's neither of who he expected and is instead, A2, looking up at him with a small smile and the sleeve of crackers he had given her yesterday in her hand.

"Good morning," Beth greets. "I wanted to get these back to you."

Daryl takes them back, but looks at her with a raised eyebrow. "Wasn' really missin' 'em. You sure you don't need 'em anymore?"

She shakes her head. "I'm going to go and buy my own today. Thank you though. And thank you for everything yesterday. The crackers and ginger ale really helped my stomach."

He gave a slight nod. "You feelin' better now?" He asks and then wonders why he does.

Beth smiles and he thinks that maybe she is thinking the same thing. "Right as rain. Going to start the job search today." She pauses and Daryl waits. She looks like she wants to say something else and he's pretty sure he already knows what her next words will be.

"We got a little community college," he tells her. "You can try your luck there. Lot of people in Scott work there. They're also 'bout to open a factory. Lot of jobs are gonna be there."

Beth's eyes noticeably light up at that and he doesn't know anything about her and yet, he can't really imagine this girl working on an assembly line.

"And if you can bake anythin', the bakery in the grocery store's been lookin' for someone for a while now," Daryl added.

"Thank you, Daryl," Beth says and the way she says it, it's like he's just told her that he's got the cure for cancer and he'll give it to her and only her. He's never had anyone say thank you to him like that and he immediately feels uncomfortable.

"Yeah…" he takes a step back into his apartment, his hand going to the knob. "Good luck."

"Thank you!" She says again, her face as close to glowing as he figures a person's face could get, and he can't help, but watch her practically bounce out of the building.

He thinks "good luck" to himself again as he closes the door and heads into his bedroom to go get his boots and get out there to start his day.

…

"Daryl!"

Daryl looks up and sees Karen standing in the door frame of the living room, holding up a plastic cup filled with ice and something dark. He turns off the sand blaster and pulls the mask that covers his nose and mouth down, letting it hang around his neck as he moves his protective goggles to the top of his head.

"Lunch!"

"Already?" He frowns.

"Yes, Daryl," she says, almost laughing, and then heads back outside.

Daryl unplugs the sander and follows her from the house. Tyreese is already sitting on the back of the pickup truck parked in the driveway, starting on his sub sandwich, and Daryl follows after Karen. There is a bag next to Tyreese and when he sees Daryl, he reaches in and pulls out Daryl's usual ham and cheese sub, handing it to him.

Unwrapping it, he leans against the back of the tailgate, next to Tyreese, and takes a bite.

It is a warm day and is only going to be getting warmer even though technically, it is still spring and the pure hell of summer in the South hasn't swept in fully yet. Daryl can feel sweat pool on the small of his back beneath his tee-shirt.

He had come to this part of the state – kind of just wandered into it after wandering nearly everywhere else in the state – in early fall, nearly three years ago, right at the time of the county fair. He has never believed in shit like that, but sometimes, he thinks coming here at that time had been meant to be or something like that.

Tyreese and Karen were there at the same time, having rented a booth to give promotion to their new business venture and they were looking for a capable carpenter. He didn't know what it was – he probably still doesn't – but he had liked the look of them and their business. He hadn't had a resume or anything of a reputation for anything like this, but he – for some reason – felt brave enough to ask them for a shot anyway.

And for some reason, they, in return, gave it to him.

There had been a woodcarving contest that afternoon and Daryl signed himself up for it.

He hadn't made the best chair, but he hadn't made the worse. In fact, he came in second place and Tyreese and Karen hired him on the spot. And just like that, he found himself in Scott, Georgia and he hasn't left since.

He usually only stays in a place for just a few months before moving onto the next; a habit he picked up from his older brother, Merle, and their old man before that, always moving them from one shit town to another in hopes of staying ahead of the cops looking for him.

But three years in the fall that he's been here and Daryl doesn't see himself leaving. He's making a good living – a steady income – and he's got a damn nice place to live. And if the flipping business ever slows down, Tyreese and Karen have already assured him that they will need him to help run and maintain all of their properties.

"So the girl in A2," Tyreese begins. "She a good tenant?"

Daryl shrugs and waits to swallow his bite of food. "Too soon to tell, but I think she's good. She's already out today, lookin' for a job."

"And she paid in cash?" Karen asks.

Daryl nods.

"She on her own?" Another from Karen.

Again, Daryl nods as he takes another bite of his sub. He thinks she is anyway. Not like she had anyone else with her, but that doesn't mean someone won't meet up with her here.

"If you have a good vibe from her, that's good enough for me," Tyreese says and then he looks to his wife, starting to talk about the knobs for the kitchen cabinets.

Daryl eats his sandwich in silence. Three years and he's still not really used to people trusting him with anything he says. He wonders how long it will be before he gets used to it.

…

They finish up around three that day and after stopping at the gas station for a fresh pack of cigarettes and a Three Musketeers candy bar, he heads home.

There are only two people living in the building at the moment – him and Beth – and when he opens the second security door and steps into the front hallway, he sees a pile of white plastic shopping bags outside of A2 with the door wide open. He stops and looks down at the bags and wonders where Beth is. The bags all seem to be from the drug store in town that seems to sell a little bit of everything.

A moment later, Beth appears from inside the apartment. Her hair was down this morning, but now, she's pulled it up into a ponytail and her cheeks are a little pink as if she's been running all around since he's seen her.

"Hi!" She greets him happily the instant she sees him and stoops down to pick up more of the bags.

"Hey," he grunts back. "Need help?"

But then, without waiting for her to give him one answer or another, he bends down and grabs the handles of the remaining bags.

"Thank you," she smiles that warm smile of hers that he's already familiar with – because she seems to always give the same smile towards him – and he follows her inside.

He sees that the breakfast bar are already piled with white plastic bags and he follows Beth's lead in setting the remaining down on the floor. His eyes catch a glimpse of what's in the ones he is carrying.

Liquid dish soap. Bottles of hand soap. Sponges. A pack of washcloths. Hand towels. A shower curtain and plastic liner. Shower curtain rod hooks.

Baby bottles…

He lifts his eyes and looks to Beth as she is going through the other bags.

That makes sense. Her throwing up yesterday and obviously running from something and not wanting anyone to know where she is. Girl got herself knocked up. He wonders who the dad is and if that's the reason that she seems to be running.

Christ, how old is she? She seems like just a baby, still, herself.

Daryl clears his throat, feeling like he just pried into something that's none of his business whatsoever, even though it was just something his eye caught and it's not like he was going around, snooping and sticking his nose into it.

"How'd the job hunt go today?" He asks once Beth lifts her eyes to look at him.

Suddenly, it's a hell lot more important that this girl gets a job and not just because she has to pay him rent every month. She's got a little baby coming and she needs money.

"Good!" Beth says, sounding happy that he had thought to ask. "I had a pile of my resumes printed off, so I was able to drop some off and now I just have to wait and cross my fingers."

"Where'd you apply?" Daryl asks while noting that there's not a stick of furniture in this place. What'd she sleep on last night? The floor? He doesn't know anything about pregnant women, but them sleeping on the floor doesn't sound like it's right.

Beth begins unpacking some of the bags. A container of silverware. Plates. Bowls. Cups. A couple coffee cups. "I went to the college. Dropped my application off in the administration office, but I don't expect anything from there. Since you said so many people in town work there, I have a feeling that if there _is_ a job opening, it will go to someone local and not a stranger who's just driven into town."

She finishes unpacking one bag and starts on another. Bed sheets and a heavy looking blanket. He wonders if she's brought anything from her original home when she left.

"I then went to the hiring office for the factory, but, I don't know if it's for me. I think all the administration jobs – which are the ones I want – are already filled up. And I _will_ work in the factory part, of course. I just don't know if they'd want me there. And then I went to the grocery store and dropped one off there, but I can't decorate cakes so…"

Daryl listens and racks his brain for a second. He's got a couple people he can talk to.

"I'm sure somethin' will pop up," he offers and Beth gives him a smile and nod.

"It's only the first day. I have plenty of time," she says.

Not that _much_ time, but Daryl keeps the comment to himself.

"Need anythin' else?"

"Oh, no, Daryl. Thank you so much for your help. I seem to be thanking you constantly and we've just met," she says with a light laugh in her tone and it's such a nice sound, it almost makes Daryl want to smile.

He's almost to the door, but he stops and for some damn reason, he can't help himself.

"There's a Salvation Army in town. They sell some good furniture there if you don't mind it bein' used," he tells her. Beth stops unpacking her bags and looks at him. He swallows and tells himself to leave, but instead, he continues. "And then there's a furniture store. Talbot's. They're good stuff, too, if you wanna spend the money. Talbot gets it delivered from Pennsylvania so it's that real Amish stuff."

He wonders how big of an idiot he sounds like right now.

But Beth is smiling at him and he nearly tells her that there's a Babies-R-Us over in Baker, the next town over, but he's smart enough to stop himself before he can.

…

"Hey, Daryl," Rick Grimes, Sheriff for the county, stationed in Scott, smiles as Daryl is shown into his office. The man stands up from behind his desk to come around to him and the two shake hands. "Find out kids are still skateboarding in that empty pool?"

"Nah," Daryl shakes his head. "I was comin' by to ask you somethin'. A favor."

Rick looks instantly curious at that.

Rick Grimes was one of the first people in town that Daryl met when he arrived. He and his wife, Michonne, had lost track of their little boy, Andre, at the county fair and even though Rick was a cop, he couldn't get his head on straight when it came to his own boy. Didn't matter either that he was Andre's stepfather. That boy was his and he and Michonne were losing their minds.

Daryl had stopped at one of the food stands to get himself a burger and strawberry milkshake and he had seen a little boy standing in front of him, waiting in line. The boy couldn't have been older than three and Daryl looked around, trying to find his parents, but it was as if this little kid had just strolled into the fair himself and got into line to get something to eat.

Daryl recognized what it looked like when a kid was on his own.

Daryl then crouched down next to the boy. "Which you think is better? Strawberry or vanilla milkshakes? I can't make up my mind 'tween the two."

And the little boy had grinned at him. "Choclate!" He announced and Daryl smiled a little.

Daryl wound up buying both of them small chocolate milkshakes and then the announcement had come over the loudspeaker, saying that if anyone had seen a little dark-skinned boy, three years old, wearing a red Atlanta Braves tee-shirt and shorts, please bring him to the visitor's building at the front gates.

Daryl had hefted the boy up in his arms and carried him to the appropriate building and two people – a frantic mom and a terrified dad – ran to meet him, taking the boy from Daryl's arms and crushing him in their embrace.

And that was how Daryl met Rick and Michonne Grimes.

"Anything," Rick readily says.

Merle has made more than one comment about Daryl being friends with "the law" whenever he visits him, but Daryl just ignores him. Rick Grimes is a good guy and there's nothing wrong with having friends. Actual friends who just aren't hanging around because you all take the same drugs or drink the same alcohol.

Daryl's still getting used to having friends, to be honest, even after all of this time.

"Are you lookin' to hire anyone around here?" Daryl asks. "Not a cop, but maybe a desk job or somethin'? Someone to help with filin' or somethin' like that?"

Rick just looks at him, an eyebrow raised.

"Got this girl. She's rentin' an apartment in my buildin'. New to town and she's lookin'…"

Rick nods now as if he gets it and if he does, Daryl wishes he would tell him because Daryl has no idea what the hell he's doing.

"I'm sure I can find something for her. Tell her to stop by."

"Thanks," Daryl says, sounding relieved, and Rick smiles a little.

"What's her name?" Rick asks and it may sound casual, but Daryl picks up on it immediately.

He shakes his head and frowns. "Ain't like that. Just helpin' her out."

"Alright," Rick smiles and it's obvious he doesn't believe that. "Tell her to come on by."

"Thanks," Daryl says again and then leaves before Rick can smile over anything else.

…

He's not following her. He's not.

The police station just happens to be on the same street as the Salvation Army store and if he just so happens to walk past – after leaving Rick's office – the same time as Beth is in the store, that's the coincidence of living in a small town. He's _not_ following her.

When he walks past the store and glances in through the large window, he sees her right in the front of the store, smiling, almost laughing, as she tries out a rocking chair and saying something to the man who works there.

Daryl's not going to think as to why the hell he goes into the store and he sure as hell is not going to think of why Beth looks so happy when her eyes fall upon him.

"You were right. There's some really good stuff here," she says as he approaches.

"I'll let you two look around. Come and get me if you need anything," the sales guy says before showing himself away from them.

Daryl's not going to think about what that guy probably thinks.

"Isn't this perfect?" Beth asks him as she raises from the rocking chair. "It's perfect."

She runs her hand over the wood and Daryl looks at the rocking chair. It's a bit beat up and worn, but it's solidly built. If she wants, he could take a new coat of stain over it.

" _And_ only fifteen dollars," Beth then says, flipping the tag towards him. "And look at this."

Daryl finds himself following her further into the store and they stop in front of an L-shaped couch that's a shade between blue and green.

"As silly as it sounds, I've always wanted an L-shaped couch," Beth tells him and he watches as she then turns and sits down on one of the cushions. A moment later, she scoots back further so she is sinking herself back into the cushions.

"Don't know 'bout used couches," Daryl frowns a little as he looks down at it. He's just imagining all of the things he walked in on Merle and some girl doing on the couch.

"I'd steam clean it," she smiles as if reading his mind and she stands up again, turning around to stand next to him and look down at the couch. "And I don't have a bed yet, so this couch would be perfect until then."

Seeing an opening, he takes it. "What'd you sleep on last night?"

"I have a sleeping bag and some quilts I brought with me from home. And my pillows. I slept on the floor of my bedroom," she answers, still looking at the couch.

Daryl frowns at that, but keeps his mouth shut. Pregnant women shouldn't sleep on the floor, but it's none of his business – despite seeming to be sticking his nose into everything about his tenant at the moment.

"I have money. I just don't…" Beth trails off and Daryl turns his head to look at her, but her eyes have caught something else and she walks towards it.

Daryl sees that it's an old wooden crib that has gotten her attention and Daryl finds himself walking after her. Beth runs her hands over it, staring at it.

It's a simple, old-fashioned crib. Nothing fancy. Not that babies need something fancy.

"There's a Babies-R-Us over in Baker," he tells her and not for the first time that day, he asks himself what the hell he's doing.

Beth lifts her head to look at him; as if she's almost forgotten that he's still there while she has been studying the crib.

"Could get somethin' newer. Maybe somethin' a little safer," he suggest even though he has no idea what the hell he's talking about.

What the hell does he know about cribs or babies or pregnant women?

Beth gives him a small smile. "I'll go look there before buying anything," she agrees.

"I'll take you," Daryl tells her without even letting a second of time pass between them and mentally, he punches himself in the jaw.

…

* * *

 **Thank you very much for reading and please take a moment to review!  
**


	4. Chapter 3

**S1-S4 are my favorites so I tend to use characters from those seasons rather than these later ones. And I can't express how much I am blown away by the response this story has been getting so far. Thank you so, so much for everything.  
**

* * *

…

 **Three.**

"Where the hell are you, Elizabeth Anne Greene?" Hershel Greene yells into the phone. "You get your ass home right now!"

And obviously, she knows her daddy is angry, but if she hadn't known, his cursing would have given him away. Her daddy never curses.

She hears a slight rustling from over the phone and then she hears her mother, her voice soft and watery as if she's been crying constantly. And Beth believes that she has and it instantly causes her own tears to rush into her eyes.

"Beth, where are you? We'll come and get you," Annette says. "No matter where you are, we'll leave right this instant and come and get you."

Beth shakes her head even though she knows no one can see it from over the phone. "I can't…" she begins to protest, her voice sounding weak and for a second, she considers it. She actually considers just packing her car up and leaving to go back home again.

Maybe it won't be that bad. Maybe everything she's told herself that convinced her to leave in the first place won't actually come true. Maybe the townspeople won't whisper whenever they see her and maybe they won't call her horrible names and maybe it won't be like the same small town that is fueled on scandal.

Why is it that she's a whore and her baby will be a bastard, but the man who also had a hand in getting her pregnant is never called anything?

"I can't, mom," Beth says, feeling a little more firm this time. Everything she said in the letters to her family is true. She's doing this for them as much as she is for herself. And they'll see that. Eventually. "I'm so sorry, but I can't come home."

"Beth…" Annette sounds as if she's going to start crying again; if she even stopped. "We don't care about anything that's happened. You come home and we'll get through it together. As a family."

Again, for a split second, Beth feels her resolve falter.

But, then she reminds herself of everything she had only just reminded herself of. She's doing this for them. For herself. For her baby. She doesn't want _to get through it_. As if her baby is something that they have to get through. It's not her baby's fault and she's not going to live somewhere where she can't hold her baby with her head held high. _She_ is the one who made the mistake. Not her parents or her baby. She's not going to punish any of them.

The only one she is going to punish is herself and going home won't do that.

"I'm not going to tell you where I am," Beth responds. "But I promise I'll call you every week and let you know how I am. And after the baby's born…" she swallows – or does her best to swallow – the thickness in her throat. "We'll come and visit. I promise."

"Beth-" Annette begins to speak, but then there is more rustling over the phone.

"You're being so selfish right now, Beth," Maggie is the one speaking now. "We're all worried out of our minds and if you would just come home-"

"Maggie." Beth speaks firmly now. Listening to her parents scared out of their minds is one thing, but this is her older sister and if anyone understands about their small town, it's Maggie and Beth refuses to believe that Maggie doesn't understand her actions right now.

Maggie Greene – along with their brother, Shawn – had always been a bit wild. Staying out late, getting caught drinking on the football field with her friends on a Friday night, playing mailbox baseball and having to spend her Sundays, fixing the mailboxes she had ruined. The town had plenty to say about that wildcat Maggie Greene. And Maggie had absolutely hated it and had told more than one person to mind their own damn business.

"You understand why I did this," Beth tells her sister and she's not asking for Maggie to understand. She's telling her that she already does.

And it seems to do the trick because Maggie is quiet on the other end and Beth finds herself nearly holding her breath, waiting to see what her sister is going to say next. Beth knows how protective Maggie is of her. It's the way it's always been between them. Maggie has always taken her duties of older sister to Beth very seriously. And Beth still needs Maggie to look out for her – just not in the way that Maggie obviously would like.

Maggie then sighs softly and Beth sighs on her end, too, with relief.

"I'll talk to dad and Annette," Maggie says.

"I'll call in a few days. Don't worry. And tell mom and daddy not to worry either," Beth tells her and Maggie snorts softly.

"Yeah, right." Maggie pauses. "Do you have a roof over your head? Are you in a good place at least?"

Beth has only been in Scott for two days, but she nods with confidence. She thinks of the little town and her apartment and oddly enough, she thinks of Daryl, too. That man has helped her already so much more than she would expect.

She admits, she has a bit of a jarred opinion of men right now, and she also admits, that she had judged Daryl like judging a book by its cover. She hadn't been expecting a man who looks like him to be so nice to her. She's not interested in men whatsoever – and she wonders if she ever will again – but she needs as many nice people in her life that she can get right now and she's thankful for Daryl and everything he has already done for her.

Beth gives a little smile into the phone. "I am."

…

The drugstore, Milton's, has an old-fashioned phone booth in the back and after Beth hangs up the receiver, she pushes open the glass door and steps back into the store.

When they had left the Salvation Army store together, Daryl had given her a slip of paper.

"Friend of mine," he grunted as she looked down at the name, address and time. "Thinks he might be able to find you a job. Go and see him."

Beth looks to the clock hanging on the wall at the front of the store. She has a half hour more before she has to go see Rick Grimes. She had been so excited and so grateful, she hadn't even thought to ask Daryl what Rick Grimes does. But it doesn't matter because she needs a job and she will not be picky.

She stops at one of the coolers and gets herself a can of ginger ale. The last thing she wants is to get her morning sickness during her interview. She's already planned on not mentioning her pregnancy to anyone until she's no longer able to hide it. Technically, it's illegal to not hire someone because they're pregnant, but honestly, why would someone hire her when they know she has to take a little bit of time off in a few months?

The only one who knows is Daryl and that's only because he saw her looking at a baby crib and she doesn't know the first thing about him and yet, she has a feeling that maybe, her secret will be safe with him.

"This it for you, Beth?" The store's owner, Milton, asks her with a smile as he scans the can.

Having already spent so much time and money in the drugstore, Milton already knows her. He's a bit of a bookish-looking man – perhaps some would even refer to him as a nerd – but he's very open and friendly and is the store's pharmacist as well as the owner; the third in his family to own it, the first being his grandfather, Milton the first.

"Until I get back to my apartment and realize I forgot something else," Beth smiles as she hands him a dollar.

Milton smiles broadly at that and bids her to have a good day as she leaves the store.

She smiles as two kids run past her, down the sidewalk, shouting and shrieking as they fire at one another with squirt guns. She taps the top of the can a few times before breaking the tab open and taking a grateful sip. It's cold and welcome because even though it's still spring, the familiar Southern humidity seems to be slowly creeping through the air, blanketing over them.

She stands there for another moment and takes another sip of Ginger Ale and whether it is the baby or the upcoming job interview or the talk with her family just now, the tightness in her stomach seems to be relinquishing just a little and Beth hopes that it's enough.

"Andre! Watch out!"

Beth hears a woman call out and then a moment later, she feels something slam into her legs. She turns and looks down, smiling when she sees that it is a little boy, having just run out of the drugstore from behind her, wearing a pair of swimming goggles on his face. And then a woman with flawless dark skin and dreadlocks in her hair hurries out of the store and gently pulls the boy back.

"I'm so sorry. I swear, I am not raising him in a barn."

Beth laughs at that, turning completely towards the woman and child. "That's alright." She then bends down in front of the boy. "It's very nice to meet you. And I love your goggles."

"I'm going swimming!" The boy exclaims excitedly.

Beth smiles wider. "That sounds wonderful. Where are you going swimming?"

"Daddy's bought me a pool!"

"I am super jealous of you for that," Beth says and the boy grins, obviously pleased by that.

Beth straightens and smiles at the woman. "I'm Beth Greene," she introduces herself.

"Michonne Grimes," the woman says in return and they shake hands. "And you have to be new here because there's no way you're just passing through. No one passes through Scott."

"I'm new here," Beth nods her head. "Just got here a couple days ago and moved into an apartment in one of those renovated buildings on Maple."

"I love those. They're from the '20s," Michonne smiles. "One of mine and my husband's closest friends helped renovate all of those."

"Daryl?" Beth guesses. "I live across the hall from him. He's my building manager."

"You're lucky," Michonne smiles. "That man can fix just about anything you need him to. Some people have that skill and some people don't. My husband, Rick, definitely doesn't and has to call Daryl for anything happening at our house."

"Rick Grimes?" Beth wonders and Michonne nods. "I'm actually going to go see him right now. Daryl said that he might have a job for me."

"I hope he does," Michonne says. "And if not, I'll make him find you something anyway."

"Oh, you don't have to do that," Beth quickly shakes her head, not sure if the woman is joking about that or not, but just in case she isn't joking, Beth doesn't want to be difficult for anyone.

Keeping herself from being a burden is the reason she left her parents' farm.

Michonne just smiles. "Come on. I'll walk you. It's no trouble," she says when she sees Beth open her mouth, rightly guessing that Beth was about to tell her that she didn't have to do that, either. "I'll fill you all in on the Scott gossip as we walk."

Beth can't help but stiffen a little at that. "Is there a lot of gossip?" She asks, but of course there will be. She's still in the South and Scott is even smaller than her hometown she's just left. Of course there will be gossip and everyone will want to know her business and maybe she should keep on moving towards California or someplace like that.

But she doesn't have the money to live in a big city.

"There's enough," Michonne answers with a casual shrug.

She takes Andre's hand in hers and she and Beth begin walking down the street. Beth takes another sip of Ginger Ale. Once again, her stomach is tightening.

"So, actually, the big thing to happen in this town in the past few years actually included me," Michonne begins. "I'm Rick's second wife and before me, he was married to Lori and they have a son together. Carl. He's going to be a freshman in the fall, God help us all.

"Anyway, Rick and Lori were married for a few years, but Lori, I guess wanted a bit more passion and Rick, I admit, is content to just sit at home in his pajamas. They realized they just didn't mesh that well anymore and didn't even love each other like a husband and wife. So they got a divorce.

"Lori started seeing a man who works with Rick, Shane Walsh. Shane and Rick grew up together and are good friends. Still are, oddly enough. Lori and Shane are now married and have a baby girl, Judith. And then Rick and me got married and Rick is now stepdad to my son, Andre, and we all raise Carl together."

Beth can't help, but smile and shake her head slightly. "Wow," is all she can think to say. "And you like Rick being home in his pajamas?" She asks.

"After my ex-boyfriend, Andre's father, I _love_ it."

Beth smiles faintly at that.

"So, what about you?" Michonne asks. "What brings you to Scott?"

And there is a moment where Beth considers telling her everything. About falling in love with the completely wrong man and being blindsided and finding herself pregnant and completely alone in this world and choosing to run away and start completely over where no one knows her or her past.

But she stops herself before she can. She has just met Michonne and though Michonne informed her on her life story, Michonne is married to Rick Grimes and Beth is hoping to get a job from this man without knowing _everything_ about her.

In the end, Beth just shrugs her shoulders. "I just needed a change of scenery."

…

File Room Clerk.

It sounds so important and Beth smiles as she finishes filling out the last form and handing the clipboard to Patty, the woman who is in charge of HR in the Sheriff's station.

"And I can either do physical checks or direct deposit?" She asks Patty one more time.

"That's right," Patty smiles. "A lot of the guys here still like getting an actual check. They don't really trust that something will put their money into the bank for them."

Beth smiles, completely understanding. Her daddy isn't the biggest fan of banks either and only is a member of one for loans he might need for things concerning the farm.

"All set?" Rick asks, poking his head into the room then as if he knew exactly how long it would take her to fill everything out.

"Yes," Beth smiles and nods. She's actually unable to stop from smiling. She has a job now. And she has health insurance. Oh goodness, she hadn't realized how worried she was about that until she asked Rick and he told her that they all have Blue Cross through the county.

Her baby will have a doctor now.

It's probably the best thing to happen to her since she's left home. _One_ of the best things. So many good things have actually happened to her, despite everything that has made her leave in the first place.

No. This is her home now – after just a couple of days. Scott, Georgia where she is the file room clerk for the Sheriff's Station.

"Come on. I'll show you your new home," Rick smiles and Beth eagerly follows him down the hall. "Florence retired a few months ago and I admit, finding her replacement has been kind of on the back burner. Everyone's been doing their own filing and well… you'll see."

And the instant Rick pushes open the door to the small room and flips the switch on the wall, she certainly does see. Instantly.

"Oh, wow," she says before she can stop herself.

"You're allowed to ask for a raise already," Rick jokes. "No one will blame you."

Beth steps further into the room. It's a small room with filing cabinets lining the walls and more making aisles. There is a desk in the back corner and a window behind that, but other than that, there are just filing cabinets and folders. Folders absolutely everywhere.

"Yeah…" Rick rubs the back of his neck and looks embarrassed to have showed her the state of it.

Beth takes another moment to look at the room and then spins back towards him. "Sheriff Grimes, thank you! It's perfect!"

Rick looks at her for a moment as if to see whether or not she's insane and then he smiles a little. "Well, if you're happy…"

"Oh, yes!" Beth can't help but exclaim. "It's perfect!" She says again. "It truly is."

"Let's take a few minutes and I'll show you what you're going to need to do," he says and steps into the room to join her.

Beth listens to his every word as he picks up the first folder he comes across on top of the first stack that has been placed on top of the filing cabinet rather than _in_ it. He explains how they're supposed to file and it's her job to put the basic information into the computer's database with each new file that is brought in before she files it in the cabinets.

"The guys type up their own reports," Rick tells her. "You just put the name and their case # into the system. They add the rest. If they are expecting you to do more than that, you come and tell me. I'm not having a station of lazy asses take advantage of you."

Beth smiles up at him for that.

"And then it's your job to get whatever file someone needs it when they need it. Lot of guys going to court need the files again or sometimes, someone gets the itching to work on a cold case. Everything's in here and it's up to you now to be able to find when it's needed."

"I can't wait to get started," Beth says with a smile and looks around the room once more.

She's quite aware that it's a complete disaster and it will take her days, maybe even weeks, to get it all straightened out again, but she's not seeing that. She's seeing, instead, that she has a job; a job she knows she will be good at. A steady job with a steady paycheck and with health insurance for her and her baby. What more can she ask for than that?

…

Beth hesitates for a moment before she raises her fist and knocks on the door to A1 and then waits, her fingers curling tightly around the plate in her hands.

She's not sure why she feels nervous, but she does.

It takes a moment, but then she hears the locks of the door turning and then it is opened and Daryl is standing there in a tee-shirt and sweatpants.

"Oh, goodness, you were sleeping. I'm so sorry," Beth says in a rush. "I didn't mean to wake you." She takes a step back. "I should have just left these on the floor for you."

"You're fine," he says and his voice is a bit more rough as it usually is when a person has been sleeping and hasn't used it for some time. "Wha's goin' on?"

"I made you these," Beth says and holds the plate up so he can see. "They're nothing fancy. Just chocolate chip. I don't even know if you _like_ chocolate chip cookies, but I wanted to make you something because I got the job today at the Sheriff's station and I know you had something to do with that so I wanted to say thank you." She holds the plate closer towards him. "Thank you for everything, Daryl."

Daryl stares down at the plate for a moment and then he moves his face towards her. "You got nothin' to thank me for. I just gave Rick your name. You're the one who got the job."

Beth shakes her head. "I don't believe that. I wouldn't have even known about the job if it wasn't for you… I'll have money and insurance and… and I should have made you something so much more extravagant than chocolate chip cookies, but I went to the grocery store and it's the only thing I know how to bake without my cookbook and I didn't bring it with me when I… Do you even _like_ chocolate chip cookies?"

Daryl looks at her for another minute. "'s my favorite," he then says quietly.

Beth didn't realize how nervous she was about that until she heard his answer. She feels a pressure in her chest lessen and she smiles, holding the plate out, and he finally takes it.

"Do you have milk?" She asks. "I just picked up a gallon when I was at the store."

Daryl shakes his head. "Don't worry 'bout it. You need the milk more than me right now."

"Thank you, Daryl," she says and she hears how soft her voice has gotten and she's looking up at him…

Looking up at him in a way that makes her ashamed and she quickly drops her eyes and steps back. Men are the worst and though Daryl has done so much to help her, he's still a man and she's just not interested in men at all. Never again. How dare she look at him like she's _thankful_ and her voice can almost be construed as flirtatious.

"I hope you like the cookies," she says, nearly back to her own door, safely on the other side of the hallway. "I'm sorry I woke you. Sleep well."

And then she slips back into her apartment before he can say anything and before she can say anything else.

Beth leans against the door once it's closed and locked behind her and she closes her eyes, taking a deep breath. For the briefest of seconds, _he_ enters her mind even though she never wants to think about him again despite having his baby in a few months.

She hates herself for wondering if he thinks about her at all.

…

* * *

 **Thank you so much for reading and please take a moment to review!  
**

 **Far more Daryl/Beth in the next chapter. I'm doing it on purpose where Beth is in Daryl chapters a lot more than he is in hers.**


	5. Chapter 4

**You guys are the best. I love writing this story.**

* * *

…

 **Four.**

Daryl finishes sanding the hardwood floors on the first floor and then he walks around carefully, looking for any nicks or gouges in the floor. He uses wood putty and a broad knife to fill in any spots and then lightly sands the areas smooth by hand. Except for the kitchen, the entire first floor is hardwood and the project takes him nearly two days, careful and meticulous and wanting it to be perfect and it's one of the reasons Tyreese and Karen have him do it and no one else. They had had a guy – before hiring Daryl – who always wanted to just get it done and treated the floors as quickly as he could just to get it over with. Daryl treats the floors as gently as if he is handling a dozen eggs; every move slow and careful. Tyreese likes to boast that their buildings had the best floors in town because of him.

Only problem is, crawling around on his hands and knees for hours, looking over every square inch of the house's floors, he ends his day stiff and sore.

"And just think. You get to do it all over again on the second floor," Tyreese says and Daryl smirks as he stands up, cracking his back, once Tyreese comes and finds him in the dining room, telling him that he's worked enough for the day.

"I'll be able to wipe these down tomorrow and stain 'em and I figure I can start sandin' the second floor after that, startin' tomorrow afternoon," Daryl tells him.

"We might hold off on staining until that jackass tells us the story with the kitchen cabinets," Tyreese says as they head outside and he locks the front door securely behind them.

They part ways, Tyreese telling Daryl to come back around nine the next morning, and Daryl gives a wave as he climbs into his truck. It's just a little bit past five and the sun is just now beginning to sink down towards the western line. Instead of heading towards home, Daryl drives to get himself some dinner instead.

Magnolia's is a good deli that sells all sorts of sandwiches and drinks in cups as big as his arm. He doesn't eat out all of the time. He actually knows how to cook and prefer to do that in a way of saving himself some money, but some nights, he just feels like getting something fast and easy and if he does get takeout, it's usually from Magnolia's.

It's a little place, owned by Amy Harrison. She had gone off to New York City for a few years and then came home to Scott, Georgia, deciding that their little town needed a really good sandwich place. Two years later and she is doing pretty damn good for herself. At least Daryl assumes she is. The place always seems busy.

Inside, he waits in line to place his order behind the others who just didn't feel like cooking for themselves that night and when it's his turn, he orders his usual, Amy already hitting buttons on the cash register because she already knows without him needing to say anything. Turkey, bacon, pepper jack cheese and mustard all grilled on a ciabatta with chips and a pickle as well as a cup of Coke.

Amy hands him a plastic number twelve with a smile and wink. "I'll deliver it myself."

"Thanks," Daryl says after getting his change back because he has no idea what else to say.

Amy is always smiling at him like that. Rick has told him more than once that she's flirting with him – Daryl not being able to recognize that for himself – and Daryl _really_ doesn't know what to do with that. Women flirting with him just doesn't make any sense to him.

Magnolia's is crowded, and it's small – Amy wisely choosing a space that she knows she can afford rather than getting tons of square footage and having it go to waste – but Daryl manages to find himself a table near the back next to one of the windows. He puts his number down so it can be seen by whatever kid working brings him his sandwich – or by Amy – and he then pulls out a weathered paperback from the back pocket of his jeans. He is able to tune everything out as he begins reading where he had left off hours earlier during his lunch break.

He doesn't know how much time has passed, but he knows that it's probably only been a few minutes when Amy comes to his table, swiping the number back as she places his plate and massive plastic cup down.

"Let me know if you need anything else," she smiles at him.

"Thanks, Amy," he said, closing his book and sitting closer to the table.

He looks around and it has seemed to get even more crowded; not a single table open and the line snaking towards the door from the front register. Maybe it is time Amy thinks about expanding this place.

Just as he opens his bag of chips, he notices a familiar head of blonde – he's not even going to think about why it's already familiar to him – and he finds himself watching her. She's holding a tray with her own order and looking for a place to sit.

Without thinking about it – even though he knows that he really shouldn't – Daryl lifts his hand in the air and when Beth spots him, her eyes widen slightly in surprise. He expects her to shake her head and politely decline, but instead, she begins weaving her way through the bodies and tables towards him.

He's told himself to stay the hell away from her and to mind his own business. He helped her with the job at the Sheriff's station, but more than that, she isn't his concern. Just a tenant who better pay him her rent on time.

And yet… Beth gets closer to the table and Daryl leans over, pushing the other chair out for her so she could sit; which she does with a smile.

"Thank you so much," she says. "This place is crazy."

"Dinner rush," Daryl says, his eyes dropping down to see what she's gotten. A natural curiosity, he tells himself. It's not like he's spying on her or being nosy.

Besides sandwiches, Amy also has potatoes on the menu, calling them Loaded Spuds, and it looks like Beth's gotten herself the Roast Beef spud – which is his personal favorite – with roast beef, caramelized onions and cheddar cheese. She's also gotten herself a giant slab of the chocolate cake.

"Patty at the station was telling me all about this place and that I just _had_ to try it out," Beth says as she picks up her fork. "Oh, what did you get? That looks amazing!"

Daryl tells her and her eyes look like they're gleaming.

"I'll have to try that one tomorrow," she decides, before digging into her spud and Daryl begins eating his chips, unable to help, but watch her.

Her hair is pulled back into a loose braid and she is wearing a black and white polka dot dress and he feels like a pervert for thinking she's pretty. Girl's young and pregnant and those are two big reasons in Daryl's opinion to not be looking at her.

"How you like the station so far?" Daryl hears himself ask and he bites back a groan.

What the hell is the matter with him? Natural curiosity, his ass.

Beth takes a moment to swallow the food in her mouth and then she smiles. "I really love it. I got there at seven today and was working all day, trying to put the file room in working order again, but I didn't make that much progress," she admits. "The officers kept bringing in more files of what those who worked over night had done, and I could have probably stayed for a few hours more, but Sheriff Grimes basically pushed me out the door at five."

She takes another bite from her spud and Daryl picks up his sandwich, taking a too-big bite.

"There's a lot of drunks in this county," she then says unexpectedly and Daryl smirks as he chews and then swallows, shaking his head. "A lot of the files that were handed to me today, it seems like nothing, but DUIs last night."

"Nah. Prob'ly the same amount as anywhere else," he replies. "People here just got a tendency to be bigger idiots and try and drive more than prob'ly in other places."

She smiles a little at that, and Daryl looks at her, feeling like smiling himself, too. Thankfully, he's able to stop himself before he can.

"I can't thank you enough for you mentioning my name to the Sheriff," Beth says and Daryl doesn't look at her, pretending to be immersed in eating his sandwich. "It's such a good job and I'm so lucky to have gotten it and I have health insurance now…" she trails off.

Christ, Daryl hadn't even thought of health insurance when he talked to Rick. He had just been thinking about money and how Beth would need it with a baby coming.

Daryl swallows his bit of sandwich. "'m glad you got that," he says, genuinely meaning it, and Beth gives him a little smile.

She has finished her spud and has now started in on her cake. "Could you not mention anything to anyone? About the baby?" She then asks, the words spilling quickly from her mouth and Daryl looks at her as the faintest shade of pink stains her cheek. "I just don't want anyone to know… yet. Especially since I just got a good job."

Daryl shrugs. "Not any of my business to be tellin' people 'bout," he says.

She lets out a breath – as if relieved that her secret was safe. "Thank you, Daryl."

"'m not sure how long you'll be able to hide it though," Daryl then shrugs again and Beth looks at him, her head tilted slightly to the side. "You've been eyein' my pickle ever since you sat down," he then says and she looks at him for a moment, pursing her lips together, clearly trying to keep from laughing, but it breaks through anyway and it lights up her whole face when it does.

This time, Daryl can't stop himself from smiling a little, too.

Without a word, he picks up his pickle from his plate and puts it down onto her empty Spud plate and he keeps his eyes away from hers so he doesn't have to see her looking at him.

…

It's a little weird to him, but it works out well for them and Daryl thinks Carl is actually pretty damn lucky to have four parents in his life who love him as much as they do.

Rick and Shane alternate having barbecues at their houses a couple of times a month when the weather gets nice and this Saturday, it's at Shane and Lori's house. He pulls his truck up to the curb to park on the street and heads up the driveway towards the Walsh house.

Lori answers the door after he rings the bell and gives him a kiss on the cheek and immediately transfers baby Judith from her arms into his.

"She's teething so if you can calm her down, you will be my favorite person in the world," she tells him and Daryl smirks a little, taking a better hold of the baby and holding her under her arms out in from of him so they are face to face.

"You givin' your mama trouble?" He asks and Judith just gives him a smile that makes him think that the baby has gas, too, in addition to teething.

"Everyone else is outside already. Do you want anything to drink?" Lori asks as Daryl follows her down the hall into the kitchen.

Michonne is there, cutting up tomatoes at the counter to toss into the salad. "Thank God," she says when she sees him. "Go save the meat. They're ruining it out there. They don't think they are, but they are."

"Alrigh'," Daryl smirks a little and then looks to Lori. "I'll just take a Coke for now."

Lori takes the can from the refrigerator and hands it to him with a smile and then with Judith in one arm, he heads out the back door onto the back deck.

Shane and Rick are both standing at the grill, Shane holding tongs and both drinking from bottles of beer. Past that, he sees Carl has got one of his friends, Patrick, over and they are both down in the yard, kicking a soccer ball around. When Daryl met Rick and Michonne Grimes at the county fair, they brought him around to meet Shane and Lori Walsh – explaining their slightly odd family unit to him – and they brought him into their fold of friends shortly after that.

In Daryl's opinion, it is almost as if they actually _like_ having him as their friend.

"Hey," he greets them both. He then looks around. "Where's the other one?"

"He was having a meltdown so Michonne put him down for his nap earlier than usual," Rick answers. "They send you out to check the meat?"

"Hmmmm," Daryl responds, uncommitted, but steps closer to the grill, making sure Judith is turned away from it, as he looks over the burgers. He frowns.

"Those damn women," Shane grumbles. "We know how to grill damn burgers. We're men and we've been doin' this since the beginnin' of time, man."

"You're cookin' the hell out of 'em," Daryl informs them both. "Gonna be dryer than sandpaper."

Rick holds up a meat thermometer. "This is telling me they're not even medium rare yet."

Daryl snorts and shakes his head. "Think I'll just have the salad today," he replies. And then because he's a damn idiot who can't control himself, he can't stop himself from asking, "How's Beth doin'?"

God damn, he wants to kick himself in the balls if it's at all physically possible.

"She's an anal little thing," Shane says, but he's grinning as he says it.

Rick gives him a look. "She wants to alphabetize. Which is her _job_ ," he tells his friend. Rick then looks to Daryl and gives him a smile, which makes Daryl want to kick _him_ in the balls. "She's working out great. It's only been three days, but she's a hell of a worker."

Desperate to get the subject away from Beth, Daryl looks back to the grill. "Your thermometer's busted. That one's black."

…

He's not generally a lazy person. No one can ever accuse him of being one. But Sunday's his free day and hell yeah, he likes to sleep in a little bit later than he usually does on any other day. He's been busting his ass with Tyreese and Karen on that renovated house and he just wants to take it easy. He's not even going to go in the woods today. He's just going to do nothing.

But there's a thump in the hallway and he has no idea what it could be because it honestly sounds like someone knocking a body into the wall, but Beth's too little to be disposing of a dead body and she's pregnant. She shouldn't be doing any heavy lifting anyway.

Daryl opens his front door to see what the thumping is. Stupid delivery men are banging a couch into the wall as they carry it into Beth's apartment through the door she is holding open. It's the L-shaped couch from the Salvation Army store.

"Hi!" Beth says, seeing him past the delivery men, and Daryl leaves his doorway to come across the hall to watch as the men set the couch down in her no-longer empty living room.

"Hey," he grunts, crossing his arms over his chest. "You gonna get that steam cleaned?"

"They already did!" Beth smiles at him and she's practically beaming. "Come here. Look."

She begins reaching out as if to touch his arm, but she stops herself before she can, her hand hanging in air for a second before she quickly brings it down again and her face explodes in a blush that he sees even though she does her best to turn away as quickly as she can in hopes that he won't.

She walks further into the apartment and Daryl hesitates a moment before following.

There's a square table now with four chairs – all wood and looking a little beat up. And in the living room, besides the couch, she's gotten herself some area rugs so not everything is setting right on the hardwood floors, a coffee table and there's a low table against the wall, still waiting to be home for a television. He follows her down the hall and sees that she's finally gotten herself a bed frame. He doesn't understand the relief he feels in the center of his chest when he sees that. Was he really that concerned about knowing that she was sleeping on the floor?

Daryl doesn't give himself an answer; already knowing the answer.

The men are carefully carrying a dresser with a mirror attached to it into the room.

"I'm getting the box spring and mattress from Talbot's. They'll be delivering it tomorrow. They were having a great sale and I don't want to spend my entire paycheck before I get it. But I got everything else from the Salvation Army store."

She then looks at him and smiles.

"So? What do you think?" She asks and she's looking up at him as if she needs his approval or something; her eyes too big and too blue and too excited, focused up on him and it's making him uncomfortable, to be honest.

People don't look at him like that. People like _Beth_ don't look at him like that.

He shrugs and says the first thing he can think of. "Looks like you're puttin' your apartment together from a junk store."

He can actually watch Beth's eyes dim a little at his comment and God, he hates himself all of a sudden. He's too aware of what self-loathing feels like and there is no mistake that this is exactly what this is. He has told himself to stop being so interested in her, but that doesn't mean that he has to be a dick to her.

He knows he needs to apologize, but before he can, Beth speaks.

"I'm just living within a budget," she shrugs and she is trying to sound so casual, but he swears that she's about to start crying.

She looks away from him, looking at her bedroom herself, probably doubting the whole thing now and Daryl looks away, too, rubbing the back of his neck.

Why did he say anything? It's not like his apartment is something out of a magazine. Hell, he was using a cardboard box to keep his shirts in for nearly a year before he finally broke down and bought a dresser. This girl hasn't even been here for a week and she's got herself a job and buying herself furniture and she has herself together more than most people.

"This is the last of it, Beth," one of the deliverymen from the store says and Daryl sees that he's carrying the rocking chair in his hands.

"That goes in here," Beth says, turning her back on Daryl and leaving the bedroom, heading into the bedroom across the hall. "Thank you so much," she smiles at the man as he sets it down right in front of the window.

Daryl has seen that she's bought a rug for this room, too. A soft short shag rug the color of the woods in the summer after a good rain. He's only ever seen that shade of green in the woods. It's probably his favorite color, to be honest. He then sees paint chips taped to the wall that she has gotten from the hardware store and have obviously put on the wall to figure out what looks the best.

She has just handed the deliveryman a tip and he is leaving the room as Beth turns back towards Daryl to see him looking at the paint chips.

"I wasn't going to paint anything," she quickly tells him. "I was just getting ideas."

Daryl looks at the chips for another minute. She's gotten shades of blues and yellows and he looks back down to the green rug on the carpet. He then looks back at the paint chips and takes one off the wall. It's called "vessel gray". He takes it to Beth and holds it out for her to take. She does, slowly, and she looks at him, not understanding.

"That'll look the best with that green," he says. "But only paint one of the walls this color. The others will look good as white. That'll be your accent wall. You paint all of the walls that gray, the room will close in on you."

Beth blinks at him for a moment as if she doesn't completely understand what he has just said. She looks down to the chip in her hand and then up at him. "Thank you, Daryl," she says softly.

He gives her head a nod and then heads towards the door, prepared to leave her apartment and go back to his and leave her alone. He stops in the doorway of the bedroom though, knowing that he should say something else to her, but what, he has absolutely no idea.

He doesn't turn around to look at her, but he feels her eyes on his back. "It looks really nice in here, Beth," he says and then without giving her the opportunity to say something in response, or to give himself a chance to say something else and maybe dig himself another hole, he leaves the apartment.

And even when he's back in his own apartment and lying in his bed, Daryl swears that he can still feel her eyes on him and he realizes that he probably should offer to paint for her. She's going to have a baby and she shouldn't be breathing the fumes in.

So much for keeping himself away from her.

…

* * *

 **Thank you very much for reading and please take a moment to review!**


	6. Chapter 5

**I absolutely love this chapter.**

 **And watching the episode last night, I just found myself really missing how the show used to be.**

* * *

…

 **Five.**

"How are you feeling?" Annette asks her that morning when Beth goes into Milton's to use the payphone to call her family as she does at least twice a week.

"I'm not throwing up as much, but I'm crying over absolutely everything," Beth answers, not at all happy about that. It's a little hard to hide the fact that she's pregnant when she is crying because she accidentally squirts toothpaste on her counter or there's a particularly touching commercial for kitty litter on the television in the break room at the station.

Annette laughs slightly. "Sounds like everything's normal then." She pauses. "Have you found a doctor yet?" She asks softly; cautiously.

Beth knows that her mom is trying not to push her, but Beth knows that her mom is obviously worried about her. Of course she is. Her daughter is pregnant and Annette has no idea where she is. Anything could happen – especially during the first trimester – and she probably wouldn't find out until long after it happened.

And Beth feels guilty. She does. This is her first grandchild and as the youngest – the baby of the family – she and her mom have always had an extremely close relationship. Beth has always looked to her mom as just not her mom, but one of her closest friends as well.

It's for the best though because whether Annette realizes this or not, Beth leaving is for _her_. Beth can't stand the thought of the disappointment in her mom's eyes if she ever finds out the truth. It's bad enough she's pregnant out-of-wedlock – which in their conservative little town, is one of the greatest sins – but if anyone finds out the father…

"It's a little town so there's not many to choose from. I actually have an appointment with a doctor during my lunch break."

"And you'll let me know how it goes?" Annette asks.

"Of course," Beth easily promises. Her eye catches the clock on the wall. "I actually need to go so I'm not late for work…" she informs her reluctantly.

"And get yourself a land line," Annette tells her and not for the first time.

"It's on the list. I promise," Beth says with a faint smile. She pauses and swallows, her throat feeling particularly scratchy and she knows she's about to start to cry. She wishes her mom could come with her to her first doctor's appointment. "I love you. I'll talk to you soon," she says quickly, wanting to get off the phone as soon as possible.

"I love you, too," Annette says, her own voice sounding thick and near tears.

Beth quickly hangs the receiver up just as the first tears start to fall and she stays in the phone booth for another moment, trying to get herself under control once more.

Wiping her cheeks, she steps from the booth and begins heading for the front doors. Milton is behind the pharmacy counter and they meet one another's eyes. He gives her a smile and wave and she is able to give him a small smile and matching wave in return as she leaves.

She likes to get to the station around eight. Sheriff Grimes had told her that she doesn't really have set hours. As long as she gets the files filed and she works eight hours, he doesn't really care when those eight hours are. The station is open twenty-four hours so she can come in the middle of the night if she pleases.

In the station, she smiles at the sergeant sitting at the front desk and he smiles in return.

"Patty's put bagels in the break room if you want one, Beth," he tells her.

"Thank you, Mike," Beth says, smiling a little easier now and she hopes the walk from Milton's to the station hasn't made her eyes as red.

Outside the records room, there is a basket hanging on the wall that the officers put their files into if she isn't there and the door is closed. Beth doesn't want anyone filing except her since it's quite clear that alphabetizing is not any of the officers' priority.

There are a few files in there now from the officers on duty last night and Beth unlocks the door with the key Patty had given her on her first day and she takes the files with her. She's been making really good progress on the room, working straight hours on end to get the room in order again and she can't help, but feel a little proud of herself when she sees that it's becoming neat and organized again; which is how she pictures it looking before Florence retired.

"Hey, Beth."

She lifts her eyes from her desk just as she's booting up her computer to see Officer Martinez take a step into the room.

"Good morning," she smiles at him. "Can I help you with something?" She asks, getting to her feet. She wears dresses and heels to work each day, but before even lunch, her shoes are usually off and she's walking around the room barefoot.

Soon her feet and ankles will be swollen and wearing heels will just be a dream.

"Turned in one of my files into the basket too soon. Have to add a couple of things."

"Of course," Beth turns back to her desk where she has set the files down. "Which one?"

"Blake, Phillip," he tells her, taking another step forward and Beth finds it easily and hands it back to him. "Thanks," he gives her a smile.

"Of course," she says again, returning his smile with her own.

He turns to leave, but then he stops and turns back towards her. "My wife, Theresa… I was telling her about you. That you're new to town and our new file clerk and she was wondering if you would like to come over to dinner at our house tonight."

Beth's smile is instant and she doesn't hesitate. "That sounds wonderful. Thank you!"

Martinez smiles wide. "Great. Before I get off my shift, I'll come and give you the address."

He leaves then and Beth sits down behind her desk, still smiling. The people of Scott have been so kind to her since she's arrived here. Every person she's met, they are more than happy to share their little town with her. And she is completely terrified of what is to come, but beneath that all, she feels a slight relief that this is where she's stopped and this is where she has decided to have her baby.

…

The nurse has shown her into the exam room and after taking her weight and blood pressure, has left her so Beth can change into the blue paper gown. And now, Beth sits, perched on the edge of the exam table, waiting for the doctor and nervous as she fidgets with her fingers in her lap. She wishes she has someone here with her right now. Her mom or Maggie. _Anyone_. Even him, if things had been different and he actually loved her like he had told her.

But she knows she has to get used to this: being on her own and doing things on her own.

The door opens and her eyes fly up to get her first look at the doctor.

"You must be Elizabeth," the man smiles. He's stocky and muscular with dark skin and a bald head and when he smiles, she sees the space between his two front teeth. "I'm Dr. Douglas," he says, closing the door behind him and then stepping forward to shake her hand. He is wearing jeans and a tee-shirt and a white lab coat.

"Nice to meet you. And it's Beth," she smiles, feeling a bit shy though she instantly gets a good vibe off of this man.

Dr. Douglas makes a quick note in her chair and then wheels a stool over, sitting in front of her. He reads through her chart for a moment before looking back to her, still smiling. "Welcome to Scott," he then says and she smiles as well, feeling herself relax a bit more. Dr. Douglas takes another moment, reading the information she has put in her chart. "So, you took a pregnancy test and it came back positive?" He asks, looking at her.

She nods. "That was about four weeks ago. I think I'm at least eight weeks along, but I don't know… I've been throwing up just about every day and I'm crying at every commercial."

Dr. Douglas smiles at that. "Those commercials for the abused animals make me cry, too."

Beth smiles and he turns, sliding her chart onto the counter.

He stands up and pulls the stethoscope from around his neck. "Let's just get the basics out of the way before I take a look at what's going on inside of you. Since you've just met me, I want you to feel completely comfortable before any other kind of exam."

Beth is grateful for that. Truth be told, this has never been her favorite kind of doctor. Does any woman really enjoy coming for these kinds of exams?

But eventually, Beth finds herself reclined back with her legs spread and in the stirrups and she winces as Dr. Douglas gently prods at her. She stares up at the ceiling and tries to distract herself by counting the tiles.

"Alright, Beth. There it is," Dr. Douglas says and Beth instantly turns her head to the screen on the monitor next to the bed, looking at the black and white grainy image. "See this?" He points to a blackened circle. "That is your amniotic sac. And this here? This little white blob? That's the embryo and that fluttering within that? That's your baby's heartbeat."

Beth feels all of the air rush from her lungs as she watches the fluttering. "That's my baby?" She asks in a whisper, unable to take her eyes from it.

It's the most incredible thing she's ever seen.

"Yep," Dr. Douglas smiles. "Alive and kicking," he says and Beth feels like she can't breathe as she stares at her baby's heartbeat, unable to look at anything else.

Her baby. She's having a baby.

"I'm going to put you at about ten weeks," he says as he hits a button on the screen and Beth sees it print something off. He then removes the prod and pulls her gown back down. He holds out the paper that had printed and she takes it, seeing that it's a picture.

Her baby's first picture. She feels tears flood her eyes.

She's having a baby.

…

After leaving Dr. Douglas's office, she heads back to Milton's.

"Back so soon, Beth?" Milton asks as she steps up to the pharmacy counter.

"I just can't stay away," she smiles. "I have a prescription I need filled," she tells him as she slides the prescription across the counter.

Beth watches as he takes the paper and reads Dr. Douglas's prescription for prenatal vitamins and she feels her cheeks turn pink. He then looks at her with a smile.

"Congratulations," he says.

"Thank you," she smiles, still small, but warm.

She knows that as a pharmacist, he can't just go around, telling others what medicines people are taking. She thinks of everyone in town who knows she's pregnant. Dr. Douglas, his nurse, Milton and Daryl. And hopefully, no one else will find out for a bit more time.

"I'll have these ready for you in about an hour," he says.

"The pharmacy closes at five?" She asks. "Can I stop by after I leave work?"

"I won't close up until you get back," he promises and she smiles a bit wider at that.

"Thank you, Milton. Thank you so much!"

She walks from the store and down the street, back towards the station, feeling a little lighter on her feet than she had felt just that morning. She thinks of her baby's picture in her bag. Her baby. _Her_ baby and no one else's. Certainly not Aiden's. He had made his thoughts quite clear on the matter. He has absolutely no claim to this baby now – not that she would hold her breath for him to make _any_ claim whatsoever.

This is the first time she has thought of his actual name ever since she left home. He has simply been "him" in her mind; as if thinking his actual name is just too painful. And it is. It probably always will be, but now, she has her baby's picture in her purse and what Aiden did – or didn't do – is no longer the first foremost thought on her mind.

She admits she's not paying attention when she walks right into the body coming out of the hardware store. "Oh!" She exclaims with surprise and she feels warm hands on her elbows, steadying her.

"Easy there," she hears a familiar, gruff voice and she lifts her eyes to the face of the person.

Sure enough, it's Daryl. His fingers are gently cupping her elbows and she feels a slight shock race down her spine. She tries to ignore it. She honestly never wants to feel a shock or a pull in her stomach ever again. She knows it gives Aiden too much power; not wanting another male to give her such feelings again, but honestly, after what happened between them, why would she _ever_ want to go through something like that with another man?

Her building manager is a handsome man. She's not blind. But she is determined to keep him just that. Her handsome building manager. Besides, he knows she's pregnant. No man in his right mind would get himself involved with a single pregnant woman; if that was even something she wants.

"Sorry about that," she says as his hands slowly drop down back to his sides. "I was a million miles away."

"Can see that," he says and she swears that it almost looks like he is about to smile at her.

"Can I show you something?" She suddenly asks him because she realizes that she has to show someone. His brow crinkles a little – confused and curious – and he gives a nod. She reaches into her bag and pulls out the picture, making sure no one with curious eyes is around them. She then turns it for him to see. "Look. It's my baby," she beams and can hear the pride in her words with her own ears.

Daryl takes the picture for a closer look, squinting slightly, and she laughs lightly, pointing to the white "blob" within the blackness.

"Right there," she says.

Daryl looks for another moment and then gives a nod. "That's… somethin'," he says and she laughs again, not at all insulted because right now, it really doesn't look like much of anything, but she saw the fluttering. Her baby's heart is beating right this very second.

Is there anything more amazing than that?

"You mentioned going to a Babies-R-Us," Beth says, taking the picture he hands back to her and slipping it back carefully into her bag. "You said it was close? You don't have to take me-" she then quickly adds. "I just think that after seeing this, I'm ready to start thinking about nurseries," she says and can't help, but smile.

She can't imagine never not smiling again.

"We'll go tomorrow when we're both done with work," Daryl readily agrees.

Beth opens her mouth to tell him that he doesn't have to take her; that she can Google directions and get there herself. And yet, she closes her lips before she can say anything. She thinks of how she had wanted someone with her in Dr. Douglas's office earlier.

Maybe having company while she looks at baby cribs will be nice.

She _knows_ having company will be nice.

She smiles faintly up at Daryl. "Thank you," she says.

"'s not a problem. Lil' Dot should have some nice new stuff of their own," Daryl says.

Beth feels her heart do a little clench in her chest before she quickly gets it under control again. She laughs slightly, feeling her cheeks warm, but she tells herself it's just from the warm sun shining over their heads.

"Little Dot. I like that," she smiles. "Better than calling my baby an it."

There is a bank across the street, on the corner, and they have a large, old clock hanging from the building. She sees that her hour-long lunch break is almost finished.

"I should get back," she says, giving the same small smile up to Daryl, finding herself actually reluctant to walk from that spot. "Thank you. For tomorrow."

Daryl nods and doesn't say anything and she slips past him to continue down the sidewalk.

"Beth," he says her name and she turns back to look at him. He seems to want to say something. He's frowning slightly and there is a furrow between his brows. But then he shakes his head; as if getting rid of the thoughts of whatever he initially thinks he wants to say to her. "Congratulations," he then decides.

And that simple word bursts warmth all over her body and she smiles wider than she has.

"Thank you," she says, hoping that he knows how much that means to her even though she knows that he doesn't. How can he?

She smiles for the rest of her walk and she keeps on smiling for the rest of the day, sometimes taking quick little breaks just to peek at the picture in her bag again.

Beth doesn't think that she'll ever be able to look enough.

…

After work, and stopping at Milton's for both her vitamins and to buy a picture frame to put her baby's picture into, Beth follows the directions Martinez has given her and finds his house easily enough. It's small and white with a tire swing hanging from one of the strong branches belonging to the old tree in the front yard.

Beth rings the doorbell and hears a dog barking from inside. It sounds like a huge beast, but when the front door opens and she looks through the screen door, she sees it is a little terrier dog with triangle ears and black and grey fur.

"You made it," Martinez smiles at her and unlocks the screen door, pushing it open for her.

"Thank you so much for inviting me," Beth says with a smile as she steps inside and allows a moment for her eyes to adjust from the bright sun outside to the front entry of the house.

The dog is wagging his tail so quickly, it is just a black blur in the air as he sniffles eagerly at her ankles.

"This damn dog," Martinez mutters and then bends down, scooping him up in his arms. "He belongs to my cousin. She's over for dinner, too."

The dog is panting, his tongue hanging from his mouth, and his tail is still wagging.

Beth laughs as she rubs one of his ears. "He's adorable."

"Yeah, he knows it, too," Martinez mutters. "Come on. Come meet the family."

Still holding the dog, Martinez closes the front door behind them and Beth follows him into the living room. There is a picture of a uniformed police officer sitting next to the American Flag on a shelf with a candle next to it. Beth can't help, but look at it. The man looks exactly like Martinez from twenty years earlier.

"That's my dad," Martinez answers her unasked question. "He was killed in the line of duty ten years ago."

"I'm so sorry," Beth looks away from the picture to him.

Martinez shrugs as if it doesn't bother him anymore, but the candle is almost burned down to nothing and she imagines that that candle is lit every night.

"I became a cop because of him. I was a little shit becoming a big shit. Heading down a path I shouldn't have been on and my dad practically dragged me to the academy by the ear."

Beth smiles at that.

"Come on," Martinez says again.

They walk through the living room and dining room to come into a brightly lit kitchen. There are two women, one standing at the stove and another sitting at the table.

"Rosita, take this flea bag," Martinez frowns and the pretty girl – who's around Beth's age or a couple of years older – cutting tomatoes at the table, stands up and narrows her eyes at him as she takes the dog from his arms into hers.

"You've always hated Roscoe because he's cuter than you," she replies, rubbing the dog behind one of his triangle ears.

Martinez rolls his eyes and looks to Beth. "My cousin, Rosita. She has her own place, but she doesn't like to buy her own food so she's always here. And this is my wife, Theresa."

The woman at the stove is frying strips of bacon, which she abandons to come to Beth. She is a pretty Latina woman with eyes that remind Beth of the exact color of brown M&Ms.

"It is so nice to meet you, Beth," Theresa smiles. "Welcome to Scott."

"Thank you so much and thank you so much for inviting me to dinner," Beth smiles at her.

"I hope Cesar didn't say we were having anything fancy. Just BLT sandwiches. Our youngest got an "A" on his spelling test and when one of the kids does well on a test, they get to choose what we have for dinner," Theresa explains.

Beth smiles at that and thinks that that sounds wonderful to do with her own baby.

"That sounds amazing," she says, both to the BLT sandwiches and why they're having them.

But then…

The smell of the frying bacon hits her nose and her stomach instantly rolls in response.

Oh, no. No, please, not now.

But her stomach ignores her and rolls again as the bacon sizzles and pops away.

"Um, I'm sorry, but could you show me where the bathroom is?" Beth asks.

Theresa looks at her for a moment, looking closely, and then gently takes her hand in hers, giving her a soft smile. "It's right this way." She gently pulls Beth from the kitchen to the hallway. "And I have a Coke in the fridge. It might settle your stomach."

Beth knows in that moment that Theresa knows, but right now, a Coke sounds so wonderful, she can't bring herself to worry about that. Not right now anyway.

"Thank you," Beth says and Theresa gives her a smile before squeezing her hand.

…

* * *

 **The goal is to give Beth as many friends as possible. And there is more to hers and Aiden's story, which will be told later.  
**

 **Thank you so much for reading and please take a moment to review!**


	7. Chapter 6

**I really love writing this story and as soon as I finish one chapter, I can't wait to get started on the next. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for all of your support.**

* * *

…

 **Six.**

 _What the hell are you doing, Daryl?_

Daryl hears Merle's voice in his head as he gives himself one more glance in the bathroom mirror before going into the kitchen, grabbing his wallet and keys from the table and he ignores his brother because Daryl doesn't have an answer; nothing close to an answer.

What the hell is he doing? How the hell should he know? It's like his brain and mouth are never in agreement with each other when Beth is around. His brain tells him to stay the hell away from her and mind his own damn business and just get her rent money every first of the month and forget her for the remaining thirty or so days of the month.

But when he's around her, his mouth seems to have completely different ideas and is always saying things that puts himself in direct contact with her and he has no idea how to get his mouth on the same page as his brain.

It's not like he doesn't like her. She's nice and she's a good tenant – quiet – and even though it's none of his business, she's pregnant and doesn't seem to have anyone in her life who wants to help her out with that. Daryl still hasn't figured out why he wants to help her out so much. It's none of his business whatsoever and he feels like he tells himself that until he's blue in the face, but his mouth is still not in agreement with his brain.

He leaves his apartment, making sure the door is locked behind him, and he then crosses the hall to Beth's door. He exhales a deep breath – as if preparing himself – and then knocks. It takes just a few seconds for Beth to answer, as if she's been waiting right there for him, and she smiles when she sees him.

"Ready?" Daryl asks and Beth nods eagerly.

He takes a step back so she can step into the hallway and she then closes and locks her own apartment door behind her. The days are warm, but the evenings and nights are still cool and Beth has changed from the dress and heels she was wearing earlier that day when he saw her outside of the hardware store. She's now wearing jeans and tennis shoes and a thick looking gray cable-knit sweater and her hair is pulled up in a ponytail.

"Thank you for doing this," Beth says as they walk outside towards his truck parked outside in front of the building at the curb.

Daryl shrugs. "'s no problem," he responds even though he still doesn't know what he's doing.

Taking some pregnant girl he barely knows to Babies-R-Us doesn't seem like a normal thing most people would do.

They get into the truck and he waits until he sees her put her seatbelt on even though he rarely wears one himself and pulls away from the curb, heading down the street. Baker is the next town over – just about ten minutes down the road – and it's a little bigger than Scott, meaning it has a Belk's, a Babies-R-Us, a Costco, a ton more fast-food places and the high school the two towns share.

The drive is quiet and he glances over towards Beth a couple of times to see her looking out the windows at the passing landscape though there's not much to see except farms and woods.

"Which direction you come from?" He hears himself ask.

"I lived in the middle of the state," she answers. "Near Macon."

He nods. He had passed through that area back a million years ago when he was following Merle around without much of a direction. He's pretty sure he's seen the entire state.

"I've never been down in this corner of the state though," she continues. "When my family and I went to Disney World, we drove, but we obviously just headed straight south. We had no reason to veer off to the southwest. I like it down here," she then says with a smile.

"Wait 'til hurricane season," Daryl says.

"I won't care," Beth says still with that same smile stretched across her face and a shake of her head. "I'll still like it. I already like everything about it."

Daryl smirked a little; not able to help himself.

He's pretty sure he's never met anyone like her before.

It's just a little bit after six when they drive into Baker - the drive taking a grand total of ten minutes - and Daryl drives them to the Babies-R-Us easily enough. Beth hops out of the truck and Daryl walks around the front to come beside her. She gives him a bright smile and again, he almost smiles, because he swears, he can _feel_ a hum of electricity buzzing off of this girl.

The store is pretty empty when they walk in through the automatic sliding doors and for a moment, Daryl just stares around.

"Jesus," he breathes. "Babies really need this much shit?"

Beth laughs and shakes her head. "Babies is a very lucrative business," she replies. "But I've made a list and I won't need even a quarter of this stuff."

They begin walking down the first aisle and Daryl swears he didn't even know so many different types of bottles existed. What the hell is the point of having so many different bottles. Don't women usually just breast feed? That's what they have them for, right?

What the hell is he doing here?

"We weren't some backwards hicks growing up on a farm," Beth continues. "But my parents kept things simple. My mom firmly believes that the more people have at their hands to make their lives easier, it just makes them lazier and more stupid."

Daryl smirks a little at that. It seems like he and Beth's mom have something in common.

"Here," Beth turns down an aisle and Daryl follows her, hands shoved in his pockets.

"Jesus," Daryl says again and Beth laughs.

"I was looking at one online and…" she keeps her eyes out, looking at the cribs on either side of them and again, Daryl wonders how the hell many kinds of cribs are actually needed. Just make sure the baby doesn't roll away. Hell, his mom pulled a drawer out from the dresser when he was a baby and he slept in that and he turned out fine.

"This one," Beth declares, stopping in front of a simple white crib. "It's a crib and look." She goes to the side of it. "And changing table, too." Beth places her hands down on the flat surface with a slight smile and then opens the two drawers beneath it. She then walks to the crib and makes sure that she's able to reach down over the side of it without problems. "What do you think? Will the color go well with the grey walls and green rug?" She looks to him and he looks at the crib for a moment.

He catches the four-hundred dollar price tag attached to it. "You can afford this?" He asks.

She gives a nod. "I can. The dad… he gave me a thousand dollars. He wanted me to get an abortion, but I'm obviously going to use it _for_ the baby." She turns back towards the crib.

Daryl has no idea what to say to that; pretty sure there is no response for that. It's the first time she's ever mentioned the baby's dad and Daryl has the urge to punch this guy in the face though he's not too sure why. He's not the first guy in the history of the world to want their girlfriend to get rid of a baby and he won't be the last. But to be a guy who Beth was dating and sleeping with… Daryl can't imagine her being with an asshole like that.

"I like this one," Daryl finally says in a quiet voice and Beth nods, not looking back to him, her hands running over the smooth wood.

"I do, too," she agrees. "I can waste an hour looking at the others, but I think this one is perfect. With the crib and changing table together, it's one less piece I have to buy."

Daryl reaches into his jacket pocket and pulls out a tape measure. "Hold this at the end there," he says, pulling out the end for her to take.

"I didn't even think of measuring," Beth says with a faint blush spreading across her cheeks as she goes to hold the end of the tape measure at the end of the crib.

Daryl smiles a little, but doesn't say anything as he pulls the tape measure to the end of the changing table. He looks at the number and then gives a nod. "It'll fit. It's a small room, but this'll fit. Nothin' bigger than this though."

He worked on the apartments in that building for so long, he's memorized everything about them long ago.

Beth's smile is instant. She gives her hands a little clap and then suddenly, she's practically skipped to him and thrown her arms around his shoulders in a hug. Daryl stands there for a moment, having absolutely no idea what to do. He feels her small, slight body against his. He can smell her hair and it smells like some kind of fruit, but he has no idea what. He just knows that it smells nice.

He nearly lifts his hands to put them on her back, but before he can, Beth gasps softly and stiffens and pulls herself back from him. Under the fluorescent lighting of the store, he can see that her face looks practically on fire right now.

"I'm sorry," she rushes out. "I shouldn't have-" she cuts herself off and shakes her head. "I'm sorry," she quickly looks away and Daryl doesn't say anything.

It was a nice hug, but he doesn't tell Beth that. She's looking like she wants the floor to open up right at her feet and swallow her whole.

"May I help you two with anything?"

Both turn their heads to see a saleswoman having approached with a smile on her face.

Daryl shoves his hands back in his pockets and doesn't say a word.

Beth steps forward, regaining herself and giving the woman a faint smile. "I was wanting this crib. And also, on your site, I saw a stroller and car seat combo."

"That's one of our most popular. It's right this way," the woman leads Beth away and Daryl hesitates for a moment before following after them.

…

Beth buys the crib, a stroller, a car seat and a high chair and sets up a delivery for the next evening once she gets home from work. She pays for everything with cash that the store is more than happy to take from her.

Back in the truck, Daryl turns the key and the engine rumbles to life and again, he waits until he sees that Beth has put her seatbelt on.

"I can't thank you enough, Daryl," Beth says. "For everything. Not just tonight, but for everything you've done since I've gotten here."

Daryl isn't too sure what to say. Talking really has never been his strong suit, but with Beth, he finds it to be damn near impossible for some reason. He doesn't know what it is. His mouth says what his brain doesn't want it to, and when he does want his brain to actually say something, his mouth refuses to work.

He looks at her and gives her a nod and isn't able to say anything.

"I…" she begins to say, but then stops herself abruptly and looks down to her lap. Daryl waits and she speaks again after a moment. "I was stupid and thought I was in love and I… I thought he loved me, too. I worked in an insurance office and he was older and an agent there and I fell for him the instant I saw him. And he was so sweet and kind to me and he always made me laugh. He didn't have pictures in his office and he never wore a ring…"

Daryl's stomach plummets with her story. He doesn't need to hear the rest of it. He already knows it. Some older sleazebag has a pretty girl like Beth with feelings towards him and he doesn't care if he's married or not and he doesn't care who he hurts just to get himself laid.

"The office was in another town than where I lived and I… I only found out a few months after. When I told him I was pregnant," Beth says and exhales a shaky breath. "No one knows. My family, they know I'm pregnant, but they have no idea who the father is and I can't tell them. They will be so angry with me if they ever know I slept with someone who's married."

"You sure 'bout that?" Daryl finally speaks.

Beth's eyes fly up to look at him.

He shrugs. "If you didn' know he was married, if he lied and never told you, why would your family be mad at you 'bout it?"

Beth looks at him for a moment and then shakes her head slightly. "Because _I'm_ mad at me. And disgusted. And… so disappointed."

"That makes even less sense," Daryl tells her. "How long you gonna blame yourself for him bein' a jackass?"

Beth is quiet at that and she visibly swallows. She looks back down to her hands in her lap.

"Me going away, it's better this way. For everyone," is all she says.

Daryl doesn't agree with that. Not in the least. If Beth's family is anything like her – and they have to be because otherwise, where did she come from – they won't be mad at her. It doesn't make any sense to be mad at her. She made a mistake and fell for the wrong person, but that guy was the one who was married and should have told Beth before anything happened between them. He doesn't know her, but he knows enough to know that Beth just doesn't go around, sleeping with married men.

But, if Beth hadn't run away in fear of what everyone would do once they found out, she never would have come to Scott and he never would have met her.

And he doesn't like that thought more than he understands.

"You wanna get somethin' to eat?" He breaks the silence. "You and Lil' Dot need to eat."

Beth looks at him and a smile breaks across her face, spreading slowly like honey. She gives him a nod. "That sounds wonderful."

"Magnolia's?" He suggests.

"Oh, yeah." Her smile grows and Daryl finds himself smiling a little, too.

…

"Okay. Now, honest opinion, Daryl," Karen says. "Brushed nickel or antique bronze?" She asks as she holds up the two different samples.

Daryl just looks at her with a frown on his face and his arms crossed over his chest. "I hate when you ask me knob questions. You know that," he tells her.

Karen just keeps staring at him, holding up the two different knobs in her hands.

"Jus' tell me which ones you want me to screw into the cabinets," he says.

"No," she shakes her head quickly and the curly lock of hair that has been falling out of her ponytail all day falls out again and hangs in her eye. "Tyreese picked one and I picked the other and we can't agree and now you're the tiebreaker. So you _have_ to pick. So pick one."

Daryl stares at the antique bronze knob and then at the brushed nickel and then back again.

"I'm takin' a smoke break," he says, turning and heading out the door.

"Daryl Dixon, you get back here!" Karen yells after him as he steps out onto the back porch.

He takes the pack from his back pocket and pops a cigarette between his lips, flicking his lighter open. A light rain has been falling everyday – steady and slowly soaking everything. A good spring rain and it's made the air cool and smell of dirt. It's one of his favorite smells and as he exhales the smoke through his nose, he then closes his eyes and inhales the earth.

Now that he's standing there, doing nothing, he realizes how exhausted he is. He's finished sanding both the first floor floors and the second floor floors and have stained them and then helped Tyreese with painting rooms today. They're almost done with the house and when they're finished with this one, it's onto the next. Tyreese and Karen will get ready to show this one to potential buyers and then they'll get paid and that means Daryl will get paid and then they get to do it all over again.

It's hard work and the way people are moving into Scott, it seems like never-ending work – which will never be a bad thing. With the factory opening soon, the town is already planning for plenty of new people to be moving in over the summer. A bunch of houses have sold already and Daryl's already planning on two new tenants in his building in the next couple of weeks; having already toured the places and gotten their applications approved. It'll be a little weird to have others in the building besides just him and Beth.

He takes another drag of his cigarette and through the soft rain hitting the roof of the enclosed porch, he hears something. He stills and does his best to listen for it again. It sounds like a meow. Weak and soft. He walks right up to the screen and looks out, trying to find the animal, thinking it must be in the backyard. But he can't see anything. He can hear it – meowing like it's starving. Probably soaked and cold, too. But he can't find it.

"Daryl!" Tyreese calls from inside the house. "Get back in here and pick the brushed nickel so we can leave and go home!"

Daryl waits another second, hears another meow, but he still can't see anything.

With a heavy sigh, he carefully puts out his cigarette and heads back inside. Maybe – hopefully – he'll be able to find the animal later.

But by the time they choose the brushed nickel for the kitchen cabinet knobs and they clean up from the day's work and lock the house up, it's raining even harder with thunder rumbling. Daryl heard on the radio, driving that morning, that the storms were supposed to get heavier that evening. Daryl knows that he won't be able to find the cat in this. Hopefully, the thing has gotten himself somewhere dry and Daryl can look for him tomorrow.

Bidding goodnight to Tyreese and Karen, Daryl hops in his truck, shaking his hair out like a dog, and starts the short drive home. He doesn't have anywhere to go except home and he's looking forward to it. His back is aching from pushing the sander around all day and he's just ready to lie in bed and listen to the rain hit the roof. It's always been one of his favorite things to do; ever since he was a kid and he had to be quiet because his dad was drunk again and if he wasn't quiet, he'd get the belt.

When he unlocks the second security door, he shakes his hair out again from the rain and Beth is just putting the key into her lock, giggling when she sees him acting like a dog.

"Hey," he is the first to greet her as he goes to his own door.

"Hi," she smiles.

Her feet are bare and her shoes are in the crook of her arm. She's wearing a dress as she usually does to work and he can see water droplets chasing down her bare legs. _Not_ that he's looking at her bare legs. It's just that they're there and it's not like he's going out of his way to look. But, he does admit that they're pale and smooth looking and soft looking, too.

"Any big plans tonight?" She asks, opening her door and then turning in the doorway to look at him as he unlocks his own.

"Nah," he shakes his head. "Wha' about you?"

"Soup and _Who Framed Roger Rabbit_ ," she smiles.

Daryl can't help, but be a little surprised. "You like that movie?"

"It's one of my favorites," she says and is still smiling.

 _Me, too_ , he says, but only in his head.

"Would you like to come over? My television is hooked up now and this is the debut movie. And I have enough cans of chicken noodle for twenty people," Beth says.

What he means to say is, "Nah. I'm just gonna go and get into bed early."

But instead, he looks at Beth and her faint smile and he thinks about chicken noodle soup and watching something with her that he likes so much. He thinks about Babies-R-Us and how she had trusted him enough to tell him something like she had.

"Sure," he hears himself say and Beth's smile gets even brighter and he almost forgets that it's raining outside because he's pretty sure that there's the sun right in front of him.

 _What the hell are you doing, Daryl?_

He wishes he fucking knew.

…

* * *

 ** _Who Framed Roger Rabbit_ is an amazing movie.**

 **Thank you very much for reading and please take a moment to review!**


	8. Chapter 7

**Work has been absolutely insane for me and I haven't had time to write. I finally found time though and am sorry it's taken me a while. Just please be patient with me. Thank you.**

* * *

…

 **Seven.**

It seems like she's gotten her first pregnancy cravings because all she seems to want to eat are Cheez-Its and pears. Beth goes to the grocery store to stock up on both because she can't taste anything on her tongue except those and even as she is pushing her cart up and down the aisles, she opens up a box and starts popping Cheez-Its right then and there.

"Hi, Beth," Michonne greets with a smile as Beth turns into the cereal aisle.

Beth finishes swallowing and then smiles back. "Hi, Michonne. How are you?" She asks, stopping her cart next to hers. "Hi, Andre," she then greets the little boy, standing in front of the boxes of cereal, staring at them.

"Hi," Andre replies, distracted. He then takes a box of Cap'n Crunch Berries down from the shelf and hugging it in his arms, he spins towards Michonne. "This one, mommy!"

"Are you sure?" Michonne asks with a teasing tone and it's apparent that they have been standing in this aisle for quite some time.

"Yep!" Andre bobs his head up and down eagerly and then standing on his toes, he drops the box into the cart.

"Oh, goodness," Beth is staring at the box, her mouth practically watering. "I haven't had that in forever." And without thinking about it anymore than that, she takes her own box down from the shelf and places it into her cart. She pauses a moment and then takes a box of regular Cap'n Crunch as well, adding it to her boxes of Cheez-Its and collection of pears.

Michonne smiles as she looks to Beth's cart and then to Beth's face. "So, how are you liking Scott so far? And the guys at the station are being alright to you? Rick was worried that they would take advantage of you and con you into doing their paperwork for them."

"Oh, no," Beth quickly shakes her head. "Everything and everyone is so wonderful. I love it here," she says and does so with a smile on her face. "And the station is wonderful, too."

"Well, I know Rick thinks you're a godsend," Michonne says and Beth blushes at that. "I'm glad I ran into you. I've been meaning to come see you at the station, but this works out perfectly. I was wondering if you would like to come to a barbecue on Sunday. It's going to be at mine and Rick's house and Shane and Lori will be there, and Daryl comes, too."

Beth doesn't mean to perk up at the sound of Daryl's mind, but she can't help herself. It takes a second to collect herself and shake those thoughts from her head. She and Daryl – if anything – are simply friends. He's helped her out more than he probably realizes even though she is always thanking him for something or other that he has done.

She sometimes feels a pang of guilt when around him, to be honest. She thinks that somehow – completely unintentional on her part – she has conned him into helping her and Daryl is a good man who simply feels obligated to help her because she's pregnant or alone.

Beth smiles at Michonne. "The people of Scott are being so kind, keeping me fed. Martinez and his wife, Theresa, have had me over a couple of times already, too. Once I get everything in my apartment together, I'm going to have to have a massive dinner party."

Michonne smiles wildly at that. "You know you don't have to do that. We just like you and want to make sure that you feel welcome here."

"I definitely do," Beth assures her. "And I would love to come to a barbecue."

She won't think about the smell of raw meat cooking and what that will do to her stomach. Maybe she can time her arrival just when the meat is pulled off from the grill.

"Daddy! I picked Cap'n Crunch!"

Andre suddenly exclaims towards Rick, who has just entered the aisle, carrying a jar of something in his hand. Rick grins as he nears the cart.

"Excellent choice," Rick says down to him and then looks to Michonne and Beth. "Hey, Beth," he smiles warmly at her and then hands the jar in his hand to Michonne.

"Hi, Sheriff Grimes," Beth greets back with her own smile and she sees that the jar is Goober – grape jelly and peanut butter mixed together.

Michonne makes a face. "I can't believe I married a man who eats this stuff."

Rick grins at her and then looks at Beth. "She's knocked it, but she's never tried it."

"Me, neither," Beth shakes her head. And now, oddly enough, she wants to try Goober more than anything. She needs to get a loaf of bread, too. Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches with sides of Cheez-Its and pears sounds like the best meal she's ever heard of having for herself.

What on earth is Little Dot doing to her?

"I'll bring you a sandwich tomorrow," Rick promises her and that makes her smile.

Michonne looks to Rick. "She's coming Sunday," she informs him.

"That's great!" Rick says and actually does look quite pleased about that and Beth admits that it makes her feel good that she has a boss who seems to like her so much.

Or maybe he's just being polite. She saw the state of the records room on her first day. Maybe he just doesn't want to her to be unhappy at the job and possibly leave and have the room and the files go back to its previous disastrous state.

Beth won't tell him, but she has absolutely no intention to _ever_ leave her job. It's a good job that pays good money and gives her health insurance. What more could she want from it?

She won't tell Sheriff Grimes that though. She has no intention of telling him anything.

Her water could break right on the floor of the file room and she still won't tell him that she's pregnant.

...

She makes sure she buys plenty of healthy food at the grocery store – fruits and vegetables and a gallon of milk – but she really just wants her Cheez-Its and taking the box she had opened in the grocery store, she goes and takes off her heels and lays back on her couch with a happy sigh. Peace and quiet. Is there anything better than that?

She closes her eyes as she pops a Cheez-It into her mouth and her other hand rests on her stomach. She feels the tiniest of bumps there – still able to be hidden by her dresses. No one can see it unless they are specially looking down at her middle, _looking_ for a baby bump.

Of course, even when Little Dot is more obvious, and people ask her, she won't say anything. Obviously, she will be pregnant and everyone will know it, but nothing can be done unless she willingly admits it. …Right?

She's not ashamed of her baby. She left home because she is _not_ ashamed and the people there would have made her feel otherwise and she's ashamed of what she's done, but that's not her baby's fault. She fell in love with Little Dot the very second she saw their little fluttering heart on the screen in Dr. Douglas's office.

But if she keeps quiet about Little Dot's obvious existence, they can't fire her. Beth knows it's technically illegal to fire someone for being pregnant – just as it is to not hire someone for being pregnant – but that doesn't mean that it doesn't happen and if she gets fired, it's not like she could afford an attorney to sue.

It sounds stupid, but that is what Beth is going to do.

She is not going to worry about it though. Not yet. Stress isn't good for the baby and right now, she's on her couch in her own little apartment, eating Cheez-Its and what's better than that? There's no reason for anything in her mind right now except how perfect this is.

She's considering going into the station tomorrow because although it will be Saturday, Friday nights for the officers are usually busy and there very well might be a stack of filing and logging for her to do and it might be better to get ahead of it rather than just wait until Monday when she will have Friday _and_ Saturday to file. It can just be for a few hours and maybe when she's done, she can reward herself for all of her hard work with a thick piece of chocolate cake from Magnolia's for lunch.

Well, if her mind hadn't been made up before, it is certainly made up now.

Beth pops another Cheez-It into her mouth and stands up from the couch, forcing herself to close the box and return it to the kitchen. She is now going to spend her Friday night, submerged into a hot bubble bath.

But just as she is about to head down the short hallway for the bathroom, there is a knock. Soft and almost hesitant and Beth's eyebrows furrow a little bit. Scott may be a little town, but still, no one is allowed to come into the building without being buzzed in and it's only her and Daryl in the building – for the moment. She knows that he's rented two other apartments on the floor above to two new tenants moving to town and should be arriving within the next few days, but until then, the building is otherwise empty.

Beth goes to her door and peeks through the eye-hole, immediately turning her locks and pulling open the door once that she sees it's Daryl.

"Hi," she greets with a smile and hopes that her happiness to see him isn't so obvious.

Why _is_ she so happy to see him?

"Hey," Daryl says and looks almost too nervous to look at her. His eyes go to her face and then darts down to the floor before almost forcing himself to look back to her. "I…" he visibly swallows and Beth wonders what on earth has him so nervous. "I need your help."

His words surprise her, she admits. She never would have imagined that this man would ever need help from anyone; especially from her. From what little she knows about her building manager – because that's all Daryl is, she reminds herself – he seems completely self-reliant and there seems to be very little that he wouldn't be able to do by himself.

"Anything," she readily agrees.

And Beth admits that him saying those words to her has her immediately intrigued and ready to help him with whatever he needs. She wonders if he needs her help with a body. She's not the strongest and she wonders if he already has the hole dug.

"You don't mind gettin' muddy, do you?" Daryl asks, cutting into her thoughts.

Beth had thought that her imagination had just been running off as it sometimes has a tendency to do, but with that question, now she's really wondering if he _does_ need her help in getting rid of a body.

…

It's a cool night, but after Daryl's question, she changes into a pair of cut-off sweatpants shorts and a tee-shirt. She sits in his truck as he drives them just a few minutes away from their apartment building and he then pulls into the driveway of a dark house with a large dumpster parked in the driveway. Daryl gets out and Beth follows his lead, looking around to where he has brought her.

Maybe _she's_ the body that he's going to get rid of.

Beth nearly rolls her eyes at herself. Really, Beth, she thinks to herself. That is absolutely insane. After all of the help this man has given her, he's just not going to kill her. And besides, Daryl is too… well, he's too sweet to ever do anything like that. She can never imagine this man hurting anyone. He's so quiet and maybe even a little gruff and yet, Beth gets this vibe from him. She doesn't know him and yet, she trusts him completely.

She's obviously a horrible judge of character – or otherwise, she would have been able to sniff out Aiden's deception coming from a mile away – but there is just something about Daryl. She doesn't doubt anything about him. With him, she gets the vibe that it's very much what you see is what you get and that is so incredibly refreshing to her.

"Where are we?" She asks as they walk around the side of the house.

"'s the house I've been workin' on renovatin'," he answers her.

Beth's eyes immediately fly up to the house they're walking next to. "Can we look inside? I would love to see it," she asks, eagerness obvious in her tone.

Daryl hesitates for a moment and then shakes his head. "Don't have the electricity on yet and 's too dark inside. Don't wan' you to hurt yourself. I can bring you back tomorrow in the daylight. If you really wanna see it."

"Oh, I do, "she smiles up at him. "Thank you."

He grunts something then, but she's not entirely sure it's English.

He reaches into the back pocket of his jeans and she sees that it's a tiny flashlight. The rain has stopped, but the sod hasn't been put down yet so the yard is a big old mud pit. She's glad she is dressed like this now – even if she is a little cold. The rain has stopped, finally, but with it, it has brought a cold wave in with it and just thinking about it, Beth feels little goose pimples break out across her exposed skin.

The front of the house was illuminated by the streetlamps, but back here, it's nearly black and none of the houses around them have their back porch lights on to help even just a little.

She follows him to the screened-in back porch and when he drops down to his knees, Beth follows his lead, her curiosity only growing stronger; having no idea what they're doing.

But then she hears it. The tiniest of meows and Daryl shines the flashlight under the deck, sweeping it through the darkness, looking for something, and Beth leans in closer, trying to find the source of the sound as well. And when the light lands on the tiny kitten, she gasps.

"Come here, kitty," Beth immediately begins to try and coax it out.

Daryl hands her the flashlight and she keeps it steady on the kitten. He's yellow and small and she can see it visibly shaking from here – whether from cold or fright, she doesn't know and it doesn't matter. She hopes Daryl has a blanket for it in his truck.

Beth holds out her free hand so the kitten can see that she is holding nothing to hurt it. "Come here, sweetie," she says in her most gentle voice; the same voice she used on her family's horse, Nelly, when she had gotten skittish over something or other. "I'm not going to hurt you. Come here."

As she tries coaxing, Daryl gets up and walks around to the other side of the porch. Beth keeps the flashlight trained on the animal so he can still see it because she knows what he's going to do. The kitten remains sitting in the mud, shaking, and staring at her, not moving an inch towards her. But at least they have stopped meowing and showing their teeth as if trying their best to show off their ferociousness despite Beth being able to see their ribs even from this distance and little light.

She sees Daryl moving slowly and silently. So silently that if she hasn't had the little flashlight, catching his feet, she might not know that he is there at all. She wonders how a person can move so silently, and she reminds herself to ask him about it later.

Daryl gets down on his belly and begins to pull himself through the mud beneath the deck. The kitten still doesn't seem to sense him, far too distracted with Beth and the flashlight and she is smiling at the kitten, waving her fingers, making sure to keep the kitten's eyes on her. If they see Daryl sneaking up from behind, the kitten will bolt and Beth's not too sure that they'll ever see it again. And they'll die from starvation or exposure and now that she knows of this kitten's existence, Beth is _not_ going to let that happen and it seems like Daryl isn't either.

Beth smiles with triumph when Daryl is able to get close enough to clasp a gentle hand around the kitten's middle, the kitten screeching with surprise, but the kitten probably weighs less than a cotton ball and Daryl is able to hold onto it without any effort.

Beth stands up and hurries around to the other side of the deck as Daryl slowly and carefully pulls himself back out and gets to his feet. She smiles as she looks at the little kitten in his hand.

"Oh, you poor thing," she frowns. "Does Scott have an emergency vet clinic we can go to?"

"You comin' with? You don't mind goin' like this?" Daryl asks and Beth notices that their fronts are both absolutely covered with mud.

She frowns at him. "Of course I don't mind and of course I'm coming. Come on."

She still holds the flashlight and leads the way back to his truck in the driveway, constantly looking over to the kitten in Daryl's hand – small enough and light enough to fit easily in just one of his hands. The kitten is shaking violently, obviously scared out of its mind. She wants to rub their head and assure them that they are alright now and everything will be just fine, but she doesn't want to startle the animal and perhaps receive a scratch or a bite in return. She's pregnant and the last thing she or Little Dot needs is contracting rabies.

Daryl seems to be thinking the same thing because at his truck, he doesn't surrender the kitten over to her as he digs around for a blanket he has beneath the bench seat. Only once the kitten is wrapped up, warm and snug, does he hand her the bundle.

Beth smiles down at the kitten in her arms as Daryl drives them to the vet clinic.

"You should name him Lemon," Beth informs him, lifting her eyes to look at Daryl.

Daryl snorts a little. "What makes you think I'm keepin' 'im?" He asks.

"You are," Beth smiles and replies matter-of-factly. "You wouldn't have gone through so much trouble to get him if you weren't keeping him."

Daryl is quiet at that and doesn't reply for a few minutes. He pulls into the small parking lot next to the Scott 24-hour Emergency Vet Clinic.

"Lemon, huh?" He asks as he turns the engine off and pulls the key out of the ignition.

"I've never seen a cat so yellow before," Beth smiles.

Daryl looks at the kitten. "Kind of reminds me of your hair," he then notes.

Beth looks at him and there are lights on the side of the building that shine into the parking lot, but the cab of the truck is still a little dark and Beth can still see the blush spreading across Daryl's face from his comment.

She has no idea what it is, but her stomach gives a slight tug; as if she's about to go over the first big drop in a roller-coaster and her body is bracing itself. She thinks of something to say to put him at ease once more, but her mind is blank. Is he flirting with her? He didn't say anything flirtatious though. At least not in her mind. And yet, him noticing the shade of yellow in her hair, that means he has taken the time to look at her and study and _memorize_ her and there it is. The tug again.

Daryl doesn't say a word.

Not looking at her, he gets out of the truck and a moment later, he's at her door, opening it and he gently takes the blanket with Lemon wrapped inside from her arms into his. He turns and starts walking towards the building, but he then stops suddenly, realizing that she's not walking next to him.

Without a word, he turns back and looks at her, still sitting in the truck. He doesn't ask if she's coming, but he doesn't have to. Beth slides down from the truck and shuts the door behind her and then hurries to catch up.

He doesn't look at her again and he certainly doesn't say anything, but when they get to the front door of the vet clinic, he steps ahead so he can reach it first and he holds it open for her.

"Thank you," she says, looking up at him, hoping he will at least look at her again.

So he noticed her hair is yellow. So, what? She's sure many people in town knows she is a blonde. There's no reason to be embarrassed for noticing. And she wants to tell him all of that, but the words clump in her throat and her stomach tightens. She really wishes it wouldn't though because there's no reason for it.

Daryl gives a nod and she thinks that he probably won't talk to her for the rest of the night.

"Thanks for helpin' me out with Lemon tonight," he says, surprising her – pleasantly so.

"Anytime," she responds and she hopes that he knows that she absolutely means it.

He has done nothing, but help her with everything since she's moved here and she wants to do nothing, but return the favor to him just as many times.

Inside, Daryl goes to the front desk and explains to the woman sitting there that's brought in a stray kitten and he wants the vet to look him over and Beth goes to sit herself down in one of the hard plastic chairs against the wall. A moment later, Daryl comes back with Lemon and the blanket in one arm and a clipboard and pen in his other hand. He settles himself down in the chair next to her.

"Let's see," Beth smiles, taking the clipboard from him and crossing her legs, she rests it on her knee. She wonders how insane they must both look right now to the woman working; both coming in at nearly eight o'clock on a Friday night, covered in mud.

She writes down that Lemon is a kitten and his color his yellow.

"Sex," she then says.

"Wha'?" Daryl's head snaps up at that and looks at her and Beth has to purse her lips together to keep from laughing even though she feels her entire face explode in fire.

"I meant… sex of the animal," she says.

Daryl's own face looks as if it is on fire, too, and he doesn't say a word as he unwraps the blanket from around the little animal and they both take a peek between Lemon's legs.

Beth writes down 'male' and then moves onto the next question, hoping her blush dies down before the vet calls them back and the tugging in her stomach stops, too. She can't tell if she needs to throw up, eat more Cheez-Its or if it's all because of Daryl.

Deep down, she knows it's all because of Daryl. She is just going to ignore that, though.

…

* * *

 **Thank you very much for reading and please take a moment to review!  
**


	9. Chapter 8

**I loved last night's episode, but I just have one nagging question. Why the hell do they keep following Rick? He never seems to learn his lessons and continues to make the dumbest mistakes.** **Changing topics, THANK YOU for the response and support you have been giving this story. I love writing it and it makes me so happy that many are loving what they are reading.**

* * *

…

 **Eight.**

He hears her before he actually sees her. Actually, he hears her laugh and he tries to think of why he already is so familiar with her laugh that he can recognize it the second he hears it. They haven't spent _that_ much time together. …Have they?

Daryl comes around the side of the Grimes house to the backyard where everyone else is gathered and his eyes seem to immediately go to Beth, who is on the deck with Lori and Shane and she is bouncing Judith in her arms, laughing and smiling at the baby, the baby giving her a slobbering smile in return, her fingers curled around a lock of Beth's hair.

It is easy to imagine Beth holding her own little baby in a few months.

"Daryl!" Rick calls out when he is spotted.

"Hey," Daryl grunts, stepping up onto the desk, and everyone greets him. "Sorry I'm late. Got the new tenants movin' in today. Had to make sure they had everything they needed."

"What are they like?" Beth asks and then smiles when Judith begins stretching her arms out, her fingers clasping open and closed now that she sees Daryl. Beth passes her to him.

"Family of four," Daryl answers, shifting Judith to one arm while Shane hands him a beer. "The dad's gonna be workin' at the car parts factory and the mom's a stay-at-home mom with the two kids in elementary school."

Beth smiles a little. "But what are they like?" She asks again.

Daryl shrugs. "'s long as they aren't drug dealers and they pay me their rent on time, don't really care too much what they're like."

"Here, Daryl," Michonne comes up to him with a paper plate with a hot dog and potato chips. She takes Judith from his arms into hers and he takes the plate. "Andre's going through a hot dog phase, so that's what we had."

"Looks good," Daryl says and then heads towards the table where the bottles of condiments are still sitting out.

He squirts mustard on his hot dog and then with his beer, he plops down at the table, diving into his food, starving more than usual, having helped the new tenant, Joe Morales, help the movers unload a few things from the moving truck.

Hearing laughter – _her_ laughter again – he looks from the corner of his eye and sees Beth, Lori and Michonne standing together and Lori is saying something with a smile that is making Michonne grin and Beth laugh. Daryl ignores the buzzing on the back of his neck as if someone is staring at him, ready to pinch him and his body is preparing for the contact. He's not too sure why he seems to be honing into her laughter all of a sudden. She's just a girl and it's just laughing. All girls laugh. Most of them laugh too damn much, to be honest.

"Shane, be careful!" Lori calls out and Daryl looks to see that Shane and Carl are climbing the old tree in the backyard – a race to see who can reach the tallest branch first.

"Damn, woman," Shane frowns at his wife. "Tell your son that. He's the one who fell out the last time." He throws a grin at Carl, who is scowling at him.

Daryl takes a chug of his beer and then finishes his hot dog in a couple more bites. He's going to have to get himself a couple more. It usually takes him at least three hot dogs to fill him up. But before he can stand up to go back to the grill, Rick and Beth approach the picnic table, Rick saying something to her and Beth listening intently.

"Do you think I'd really be good at something like that?" Beth asks.

She puts down a plate next to Daryl and he sees that she's brought him three more hot dogs. Daryl looks up at her and she smiles a little, down at him.

"One of them is for me," she tells him.

It takes him a moment, but then he remembers himself. "Thanks," he grunts.

"I'd think you'd be great. I wouldn't be asking if I didn't think you would be great," Rick says, continuing what he and Beth have been talking about.

Rick grabs a beer from the cooler and sits down across from Daryl and Daryl finds Beth sitting down next to him. He notices immediately that she's sitting too close to him and the first time their arms brush together, Daryl can't help, but tense a little and scoot over so there's more space between them.

He doesn't know what the hell is going on, but ever since they spent their Friday night together, in the animal clinic, watching the vet check over Lemon, it's almost like he can't stand to be around her – though he knows that's not really the truth. He likes being around her _too_ much and just knowing that he could knock on her door and she'd be willing to help him with anything – including crawling around in the mud while trying to get some stray kitten – it's making him think of little except for her.

And that's just not something that's good. Girl's pregnant with another guy's baby and Daryl isn't looking to be any kind of daddy to some kid who doesn't belong to him.

Not to mention that when she said even the word 'sex', he had felt his body get so hot, he had damn near exploded. He needs to stay away from a girl who can do that to him.

"Sorry," Beth says to him softly and Daryl shoves a chip in his mouth so he doesn't have to say anything to her. She then looks back to Rick. "I don't know if I'd be any good at it. What about the file room?" She asks and her question catches Daryl's attention.

"Are you firin' her?" Daryl asks, making sure he gives Rick his fiercest frown.

Rick smiles a little. "No. I'm promoting her. Or rather, I'm trying to."

Beth picks up the mustard bottle that is between hers and Daryl's plates and doesn't say anything as she squirts a line onto her hotdog and Daryl glances at her, it obvious that she's in deep thought, mulling over whatever Rick is offering her.

"Intake desk at the Juvenile County Jail," Rick then tells Daryl and if Daryl had been eating or drinking anything at that second, he would have started choking.

"Are you out of your damn mind?" Daryl says, still frowning at the man sitting across from him, his food and beer all but forgotten for the moment because what the hell was Rick thinking of even suggesting anything like that to Beth?

Beth is like sunshine, for God's sakes, and Rick wants to stick her at the desk where she has to deal with all of the little shits in this county who are arrested and can't be taken to the adult jail to be held? Not to mention that she's carrying a baby – though Rick can't know that and it's not Daryl's secret to tell.

Baker is a bit bigger of a town and while Scott has the Sheriff's main station, Baker has the County Jail complex that houses all of those who are arrested in the county and have to be held until court dates and resolutions of their cases. Daryl knows the place well, having to go and visit Merle more than once there or put more money into his commissary account when Merle still lived around here and was getting himself constantly picked up for something.

Scott has the Juvenile Jail though and just because it takes care of kids under eighteen, that doesn't mean anything. They're being arrested for a reason and being brought in, wearing handcuffs, _for a reason_. And Rick wants Beth to be in charge of getting them processed?

Daryl is frowning at Rick and doesn't expect himself to stop anytime soon. "I thought she was doin' good in the file room," he grunts.

"She's done an amazing job in there. That's why I know she can handle more." Rick looks back to Beth, who has been quietly taking small bites of her hot dog and still thinking. "It's Monday through Friday. If a kid gets arrested on Friday night through Sunday night, they sit in the cage in the Sheriff's station until Monday when they can be processed."

"And what does processing entail?" Beth finally speaks again, taking a napkin from where they are resting beneath a small rock to keep from blowing away in the breeze. She wipes at her fingers and Daryl can't help, but look at her as she looks at Rick.

"Kid comes in with an officer. The officer stays there with you. You're perfectly safe," Rick says firmly. "If the kid has been arrested before, you bring him up in our system. If they haven't, you make a new file for them in our system. You ask them questions. If they're under the influence of anything. If they're addicted to anything. If they're depressed or experiencing suicidal thoughts or need to see medical. That kind of thing. And then you print them off a wristband with a barcode, put it on their wrist, have them sign the form and then the officer leads them back into the jail. That's that."

Beth is quiet once again and Daryl finishes his potato chips, chewing a little more forceful than necessary as he watches her. She's thinking about it. He can tell she is.

"You'll be making more money, too," Rick adds.

And that's it. Those are the magic words.

And Daryl glares at Rick through narrowed eyes even though Rick doesn't know that those are the magic words. Beth's got a baby coming and she's going to want to get as much money as she can to take care of her baby. Daryl remembers going down to the welfare office with his mom at the beginning of every month in case the state forgot to mail the check and Daryl knows that Beth is going to do anything she can to make sure that she never has to do that with her own baby.

"Who the hell's doin' intake now?" Daryl asks.

"Gloria, but she's getting married next weekend and her husband doesn't want her working anymore. I've been looking for a replacement, but I couldn't find a candidate." Rick's eyes settle onto Beth once more. "Until now."

"So who's gonna do the filin' for everyone?"

Rick shrugs. "I'll figure it out. Intake's more important and I know Beth can do it."

She's quiet for another moment. "A raise?" She then asks and Daryl already knows her answer before she gives it.

He's not sure why he's feeling so damn nervous. It's just a job and it's not like she'll be working _in_ the jail. And like Rick just said, there will always be an officer with the kid who's been brought in. And if Daryl remembers the place from when Merle was kept in there, the kids would have to go through something like three heavily-locked doors, plus plenty of guards, to get out of the jail area and get to where Beth would be to get themselves out of there.

"Alright," Beth answers and Rick's smile is instant. "I start Monday?"

"I'll tell Gloria to expect you and she can start your training." Rick stands up, still smiling at her. "I can't thank you enough for this, Beth. You're going to be great."

Beth does her best to smile, too, and Rick leaves to go join Shane and Carl in their tree-climbing competition. Daryl finishes up his third hotdog and chases it down with a guzzle of beer. Beth remains sitting next to him and he figures he should say something even though it's just the two of them and he's trying to get himself to stop talking to her so much.

"I'm able to pick Lemon up tomorrow," he says and that gets her to smile – which he realizes is what he had been hoping he would be able to do for her. "Vet said he's gained a lil' bit more weight in just since havin' him since Friday night and he's got all his shots now. I'm gonna have to bring him back in a few weeks to get 'im fixed."

"Daryl, that's so exciting!" She exclaims, her smile growing.

"Is it?" He asks her and almost wants to smile because she is. He catches himself in time though. He's not going to let himself be effected by this girl's smiles anymore. He's getting himself too attached and there's no reason for him to.

"Definitely," she nods emphatically and keeps smiling. "Is Lemon his official name?"

Daryl shrugs. "'s the name that's on his license now," he answers and she is practically beaming, blinding him like he's staring directly into the sun. "You sure 'bout this?" He then asks because he's unable to help himself – apparently – from butting into her business.

"It's more money," Beth says with a slight shrug. "And it _is_ a compliment actually, that Sheriff Grimes wants to put me in a position that is so important and needed. I mean, I've _just_ started working for him and he already wants to promote me."

Daryl reluctantly nods.

"Why shouldn't I take the job?" She asks.

After a moment, he shrugs. "Don't want you to think you won't be safe, 'cause you will be. Rick's right. The kids are in cuffs and the officer is with 'em. Just don't know if I can picture you workin' in a jail."

"Well, that's true," she says with a nod. "It's certainly never been anything I've ever pictured for myself." She pauses. "But a lot of what's happened to me isn't how I've pictured it."

She looks down to her hands and visibly swallows.

Daryl is quiet, having absolutely no idea how to respond to that.

Girl's young and all alone, having to move to a brand new place to start completely over because some married asshole knocked her up and expected her to deal with it on her own. He's pretty sure there's _nothing_ to say in situations like this.

"Cheesecake's ready!" Michonne calls out, stepping out of the house with the dessert in her hands and Beth gasps.

"Cheesecake!" She says with an amazed whisper – as if she's never heard of anything more amazing than cheesecake for dessert – and Daryl feels himself nearly smiling and the heavy mood hanging over their heads seems to disappear.

…

When everything is cleaned up and Michonne has given Beth an extra piece of cheesecake to take home with her and Beth thanks everyone again and again with hugs, saying that she had the best time this afternoon, and they finally get outside, Daryl frowns a little when he sees that there's no extra car.

"You didn' walk here, did you?" He asks.

It's almost dark now, the sun nearly completely gone, but the sky still colored with faded shades of purple and orange, fading into dark blue and black. A few lightning bugs have come out, silently illuminating the air for a second before flipping off again.

"It's not that far," Beth answers him as they walk down the driveway towards his truck. "And it was so lovely today."

Daryl just keeps frowning. It might have been lovely – _hours_ earlier – but there's a nip in the air now with sun all but gone and it's not like Scott is running rampant with crime, but come on. She should know better than just to go walking off somewhere, alone.

This damn girl. No matter how hard he tries to stay away from her, she does something and she's practically screaming out for him to take care of her.

"It's fine, Daryl," Beth says as if able to read his mind and he pulls his keys out from his pocket. "Besides, it's important that I stay healthy and as fit as I can be and walking helps me do that," she says and she doesn't look pregnant – not at all – but he's seen the picture of Little Dot. She is and she would know more about being pregnant than he ever would.

Daryl goes to the passenger side of the truck and opens the door. "Get your ass in here, Beth," he says, nearly grumbling, acting as if this is some huge inconvenience even though they're going to the same exact place.

And if he's acting annoyed, Beth seems to know that he doesn't mean it – not really – because he expects her to argue, but instead, she gives him a smile and climbs up into the truck. Daryl makes sure that she's completely in and the skirt of her dress isn't in the way before he closes the door after her.

…

Eliza Morales, the nine-year-old daughter of the new family of tenants on the second floor, had knocked on his door that morning, holding up a bucket of sidewalk chalk.

"Do you mind if I draw outside?" She asked him, sounding shy, but trying to appear brave.

"Knock yourself out," he had told her, which had earned him a bright smile.

Hours later, as he pulls his truck into his space, returning home from work, he sees her outside now, hopping on a hopscotch that she has drawn on the sidewalk in front of the apartment building in green and pink chalks. Her mom, Miranda, is sitting on the front steps, watching her, and seven-year-old, Louis, is also there, sitting on the ground as he draws something with the piece of blue chalk.

Daryl holds Lemon in one arm and the bag of all of the supplies the vet had sold him that he'll need for the kitten in his other hand and heads towards them.

"Hi, Daryl!" Eliza greets him as if they're old friends and she stops her hopscotch to come hurrying over. She gasps when she sees Lemon. "Is that your kitten? Mama, look at him! He's so tiny and so yellow!"

"His name's Lemon," Daryl tells her and can't help, but smile a little at her enthusiasm. Without waiting for her to ask, Daryl gently holds Lemon out and Eliza takes him – eagerly yet carefully, hugging the animal close to her chest, stroking his tiny head.

They are soon joined by Louis and Miranda, both wanting to see the kitten as well.

"Everything alright so far with the place?" Daryl asks Miranda.

"It's perfect," she assures him. "The nicest place Joe and I have lived in yet. Beth was telling me that you're the one who did the renovation work."

Daryl feels embarrassed for some reason. "Tyreese and Karen do most of it. I just help out."

Miranda smiles then as if she doesn't quite believe that, but she doesn't comment on it.

They all turn when another car pulls into the apartment lot and Beth gets out. She smiles when she sees them all gathered there and she hurries over.

"Is Lemon home?" She guesses and beams when she sees the kitten in Eliza's hands. "Hello, again, Lemon," she smiles and bends down, kissing the kitten on his head.

"How'd your first day go?" Daryl hears himself ask her. He hasn't stopped looking at her since she's gotten here, but he's not going to think about that.

He tells himself that he's only looking because she looks damn tired to him right now.

Beth pauses a moment and thinks the question over. "Overwhelming," she finally decides., but then she gives him a faint smile. "But oddly enough, I think I'm going to like it."

He wants to talk to her more – he's not going to think about that, either – but he doesn't want to do it in front of Miranda and the kids. And it's as if Miranda can maybe read his mind because with a smile, she puts her arms around her kids' shoulders.

"Come on, you two," she says. "Dad will be home soon. Let's go inside and clean up and get ready for dinner."

Eliza reluctantly hands the kitten back, this time to Beth. "Bye, Lemon."

Within minutes, they have gathered their chalk and other things and the Morales family has gone inside, leaving Daryl and Beth alone on the sidewalk.

"You mean that?" Daryl asks.

Beth nods, rubbing a thumb behind Lemon's ear and the kitten practically purring. "I do. It's… it's sad. Gloria and I booked six kids today. The youngest was twelve and he's already damaging property and he looks so small with the handcuffs on his wrists and so scared, but… maybe he'll be scared straight and this is the only time I'll ever see him."

Daryl doesn't say anything to that. He's going to let her keep her optimism. He's not going to tell her how many times Merle was arrested when they were kids and how they hadn't seemed to have any effect on him.

"I can see you bein' good at it," he offers.

Beth smiles up at him. "Yeah?"

He gives a nod. "Seein' you first when they get to jail might be the best thing to happen to 'em. Might help 'em get through it."

 _Son of a bitch_ , he growls to himself. He really needs to stop saying shit like that to her.

"Thank you, Daryl," Beth says softly and she gently passes Lemon back over to him. "I need Cheez-Its and a hot bubble bath."

Daryl refuses to let his brain even process those two words because if he does, of course he'll start imagining her _in_ that bubble bath and that's just not where his mind needs to go.

"Have a good night," he says instead.

Beth gives him a smile. "You, too, Daryl. Have a good first night together," she says, giving Lemon one more scratch and then with one last smile and wave, she heads into the building, leaving Daryl now as the only one on the sidewalk.

He looks towards the building as if he can still see Beth and he rubs a thumb back and forth behind Lemon's ear. He then lifts the kitten so they are face to face.

"I'm totally fucked, Lemon," Daryl says. Lemon just swishes his tail in response.

…

* * *

 **Thank you so much for reading and please take a moment to review!**

 **PS - the Morales is the family way back from S1 who parted ways with Rick and the others when they left the quarry.**


	10. Chapter 9

**I wasn't planning on updating the next chapter so soon, but the next two days of work are going to be absolutely insane for me and then I have a doctor's appointment on Friday and sometimes, that can last for hours. I know some get impatient so I wanted to upload this when I could. I hope you enjoy it! Thank you for your continued support of this story!**

* * *

…

 **Nine.**

"Bass County Juvenile Jail. This is Beth. How may I help you?" Beth answers the phone.

"Hey, Beth. It's Shane. I'm about two minutes away and I'm gonna need officer assistance," he tells her.

"You got it," Beth says and then promptly hangs up the phone and on her chair, she rolls to the phone at the other end of the counter. It goes to the main pod within the jail and an officer picks it up on the first ring. "Officer requesting assistance in intake," she tells him.

Once that's done, she then rolls back to her computer and brings up the main processing screen, before standing up, seeing the Sheriff's car roll to a stop outside. She's a bit nervous, but she does her best to hide it. This is her second day on the job without Gloria. She is now solely in charge of the intake desk and Gloria has taught her everything she thought Beth would need to know for the job before leaving, getting married and now on her honeymoon and after that, her husband wants her to stay home. He doesn't like the idea of his wife working in a jail – whether they're just juveniles or not.

Beth has quickly learned already. It seems to matter very little the ages of those brought in here. Some of them have been brought in so many times, Beth knows that they will see the inside of the adult jail just as many times. Sheriff Grimes had told her that sometimes, a person is just too far gone and nothing else can be done except keeping them in a cell, but Beth doesn't want to believe that. Maybe years from now, she'll be a bit hardened to it, but for now, every kid that comes in here, Beth believes they can change.

Her hand comes to a rest on her bump – hard and firm and still small, but definitely noticeable beneath her dress – either protecting Little Dot or drawing strength from the baby – as two officers come out from the doors that lead back into the jail and Shane brings in the kid. He is probably around sixteen or seventeen and is struggling despite his hands in cuffs, trying to kick his legs up and twisting and turning, trying to get Shane to lose his grip on him. The two officers rush over and between the three of them, they are able to restrain him the best that they can, practically dragging him to the intake desk and standing him in front of Beth.

"Name?" She asks him.

The kid – almost man – just glares at her and doesn't say a word.

Shane tightens his hold on his arm. "Answer the lady right now," he orders.

He glares at Shane and then looks back to Beth. "Clarence Thomas Meeks," he answers.

Beth raises an eyebrow as she types it in. Sure enough, he already has a record and it is promptly loaded onto her screen. His last arrest was just six months earlier. And he is only seventeen-years-old. She looks back to Clarence.

"Do you know who Clarence Thomas is?" She asks.

"Some judge," Clarence shrugs.

"We'll find you a book on him to read," Beth promises him and then moves to the next question. "Charge?" She asks, but looks up to Shane for that particular answer.

"B&E," Shane says with a frown at Clarence.

 _Breaking and entering_ , Beth types. "Are you currently addicted to anything?" She asks.

"Yeah," Clarence answers truthfully. "Alcohol and heroin."

Beth's fingers pause over the keys and then shakes her head slightly. "You're too young for that," she says, more to herself than to him, but Clarence hears her anyway.

"Yes, ma'm," he responds.

She asks him the rest of the questions and then prints out his wristband with his name and jail ID number on it. She hands it to Shane to put on his wrist himself since Clarence is cuffed from behind and she can't do it herself. She then opens her top drawer and pulls out a blue wristband for him to wear as well. Depending on how long he's going to be locked up, Clarence is going to be going through withdraw and this will alert the officers to it.

"Bye, Clarence," Beth says as the officers begin leading him towards the doors that lead back into the jail, but Beth doesn't think he hears her since he is struggling once again.

She sighs softly once it's just her again in the room and her hand goes, once again, to her baby bump. She has another appointment with Dr. Douglas tonight after work and she can't wait to see her Little Dot on the screen again and to hear their heartbeat. She's missed it. And she's only in her fourth month, but her arms are already aching to hold her baby. She doesn't know how she's going to make it through these next five months.

Having a moment of calm – for the moment – Beth goes to Amazon to look at books on Clarence Thomas, seeing that he has written an autobiography and she buys it with one click, having it shipped here directly to the jail.

As she's finalizing her order, the outer doors open and she lifts her eyes, instantly smiling when she sees who it is. Daryl pulls open the inner door and she can't help, but look at him. Technically ogling, but no one needs to know that. And when she looks at Daryl, she can't help, but think of Aiden because they are just so different. And it's surprising to her that she's attracted to Daryl – she can't lie to herself and say that she isn't – because Aiden was the definition of clean cut.

His hair was always trimmed and he never had facial hair. He wore dress pants and buttoned-shirts every day, sometimes with a tie, and he was very adamant about going to the gym three times a week to keep himself in tip-top shape.

Not only does she hate herself for sleeping with a married man, but she is deeply ashamed for falling for someone in the first place who is so vain and cares little for anyone besides himself.

Beth can't wait for her baby to be born so she can teach him or her how to be nothing like their father.

Daryl doesn't need to go to the gym though. She has already caught herself more than once staring – practically drooling – over the man's well-defined biceps. He's muscular, but not overly so like one of those muscle men on the magazine covers. In the heat of summer now upon them, he wears tee-shirts every day and jeans. She can never imagine Daryl wearing shorts and besides, she's sure wearing shorts isn't safe with his job. His hair is long, covering his hairs and she's never considered herself a fan of longer hair on men, and yet, on Daryl, it looks good. _So_ good. And he seems to shave just once every few days. Another thing that seems to suit him perfectly.

Beth doesn't understand how it's possible to find attraction with such two different men.

"Hey," Daryl says, breaking through her thoughts.

"Hi," Beth smiles, feeling happy at just having him there, and she stands up. "What are you doing here?" She asks.

He holds up a plastic bag with Magnolia's printed on the side. "Lunch," he simply says.

Beth's eyes fly to the clock. It's noon already and she hasn't even noticed. One good thing about this job; it's certainly never boring and time seems to fly.

"You brought me lunch?" She asks and she can't help, but look at him with amazement.

"Nah. Jus' figured I'd come and eat in front of you," he says and she sees the twitching of his lips as he does his best to keep from smiling, and Beth lets out a little laugh. "Yeah, I brought you lunch," he then tells her.

Beth feels her stomach tighten and she tries to fight it.

She's done with men. She really is. They aren't to be trusted because they act all sweet and kind towards you and act like they want to be spending their time with you and promise you the world and then they turn around and tell you that they're married and this between you both was just for a little bit of fun and why didn't you know that already?

"You okay?" Daryl asks, breaking through her thoughts once more. "You lookin' like you're a million miles away."

Beth snaps out of it and shakes her head slightly and gives him a smile. "I'm okay. Just was a little crazy here this morning."

She pulls a second chair to her desk and Daryl comes around to sit. She sits down in her chair once more and Daryl sets the bag down on her desk and she can't help, but smile, as she watches Daryl take the food from the bag. He sets a plastic container down in front of her and Beth sees that he has gotten her the Caesar Salad – her favorite – and her smile grows as he then sets a second plastic container down in front of her. A thick slab of Magnolia's delicious chocolate cake.

"You know me so well," Beth says, sounding amazed, as she shakes her head slightly.

Daryl shrugs as he unwraps his sandwich. "Jus' pay attention," he says and is trying to sound so casual, but Beth can see the tips of his ears, poking through his hair, turn red.

"Thank you, Daryl," she says and hopes he can hear how much she means it. "This is…" she feels tears sting her eyes and she shakes her head to keep them from spilling out. "Thank you," she says again and feels so completely overwhelmed in that moment, her hands shake ever so slightly as she unwraps her fork from the plastic wrapping.

"Relax, Beth," Daryl says. "'s just a salad."

Beth exhales a breath and she is able to look at him again, seeing him looking at her even though he looks a little uncomfortable, and she gives him a soft smile.

"So," she says, stabbing her first crouton. "How's work today?"

She's desperate to change the subject and Daryl seems to know that, actually answering her question with words instead of just half-English grunts.

"Pretty good. Just the final touches bein' put on. Karen's puttin' the house on the market tomorrow so it's onto the next one."

"I'm sure it will sell in no time," she smiles. "It's beautiful inside and out."

As promised, Daryl had taken her into the renovated house to show her around and it had been beautiful. The sun had been pouring in through the windows and the hard-wood floors had been stained dark and they practically sparkled in the light.

Beth knows she can never afford a house – she and her baby will probably always live in an apartment – but at the moment, she had looked at the floors and imagined her baby crawling across them.

They both look when the inner doors open and Shane comes out from the jail area. He smiles the instant his eyes fall upon the two of them, eating lunch at Beth's desk.

"Hey there, you two," Shane's smile grows wider.

Daryl doesn't say anything; just chews his sandwich and looks at Shane.

"Is Clarence all settled?" Beth asks. "I've already ordered a Clarence Thomas book for him."

Shane's smile fades and he shakes his head. "Beth…" he begins to say, but then whatever other words he is thinking of saying seem to pause in his mind before leaving his mouth. He shakes his head again. "With a lot of these kids, you're just settin' yourself up for disappointment if you think you can reach them."

"That's the problem though, isn't it?" Beth says with a slight shrug. "Everyone else has already given up on them."

Shane is quiet at that. "You two enjoy your lunch," he says before heading back outside.

Daryl and Beth are both quiet for a moment, working on their lunches.

"I knew you'd be good at this," Daryl then says, practically in his usual grunt, but the compliment makes Beth's stomach tighten nonetheless and she smiles to herself as she finishes her salad and starts work on her piece of chocolate cake.

…

"Weight, good. Blood pressure, good. Temperature, good. Both your heartbeats, good," Dr. Douglas checks things off on her chart. "You drinking your milk?" He then asks her.

"Trying to," Beth answers from behind the screen as she changes from the gown back into her dress.

"No _trying_ to it," is the doctor's reply. "Just drink it. Three glasses a day. Got to keep you and the baby strong. And vitamins? You should be due for a refill soon." He writes out another prescription. "Anything else?"

Beth straightens her dress one more time and then comes out from behind the screen. "I don't think so. Everything really looks okay?"

Dr. Douglas gives her his usual warm grin. "You were there," he teases. "Yes, Beth. Everything looks as good as gold. Both you and the baby are doing very well."

And though he has already told her that during the ultrasound, Beth smiles again and lets out a sigh of relief. She can't let anything happen to this baby. This baby is all she has in the world right now. She loves this baby so much already; more than anything in the world.

"Any questions for me?" He asks her, standing up from his stool and handing her the prescription for more vitamins, which she will take to Milton tomorrow to fill.

"When will I show? I'm still able to hide it beneath my dresses, but I was just wondering when I won't be able to anymore."

"It's different for every woman," Dr. Douglas answers. "You might wake up tomorrow and you'll think it popped out overnight. Or maybe you'll be one of those women who will be able to hide it and just pretend you're gaining weight. Unfortunately for you, it's summer and it will look damn strange if you're wearing over-sized sweatshirts."

He pauses.

"Are you trying to hide your pregnancy?" He asks.

Beth hesitates and then shakes her head even though, yes, that's exactly what she's trying to do. "I just don't want everyone to make a big deal about it and I just started a new job…"

Dr. Douglas gives her a small smile. "I'm sorry to tell you this, but because you're such a little thing to begin with, it's probably going to be more obvious than not."

Beth exhales a sigh. That's what she's been worried about.

After making her next appointment, Beth heads home, looking forward to getting into her pajamas and climbing into bed for the night. She's just so tired lately. It seems like no matter how much sleep she gets, she's still dragging herself in the morning. And she can't even drink coffee to help her with it. She thought she had read that during the second trimester, women began feeling more like their old selves, but that doesn't seem to be happening to her.

She bought her bed frame from the Salvation Army and then the mattress and box spring from Talbot's. She then bought sheets and a comforter from the Belk's over in Baker and with that, her bed has become one of her favorite places in the world.

After pouring herself a glass of milk and grabbing her box of Cheez-Its, Beth heads into the bedroom where she changes into her pajamas. Then grabbing her dinner and her laptop, she settles herself against the soft pillows with the comforter pulled across her legs.

She still hasn't gotten a landline or a cellphone. She knows she needs it in case anything happens with the baby and she needs to call her doctor or someone for help, but she's worried that if she calls her parents, they'll use caller ID and track her down that way.

She's just not ready for anyone to find her yet.

So instead, for the time being, she calls her family from her laptop, using Skype. Maggie had taught Hershel and Annette how to use it and now, they speak face-to-face at least four times a week – usually in the evenings once Beth has eaten and is ready for bed.

She dials them now and within seconds, Hershel has answered.

"There she is," Hershel beams and Beth smiles, too. The first few times they had talked face-to-face, Beth had nearly burst into tears. She misses her parents and Maggie and Shawn and the farm so much, but this is the way things have to be. "How was the doctor?" He asks.

"Good," Beth smiles widely. "Me and the baby are both doing really well. I'll email you the newest ultrasound picture. I just have to drink more milk," she says and then holds up her glass of milk so her daddy can see. "Where's mom and Maggie?" She asks.

"In the kitchen, going over last minute dinner preparations," Hershel answers with a little twinkle in his eye to show his amusement.

"I forgot that was tonight," Beth giggles.

A couple of days ago, the last time she spoke with her family, Maggie told Beth that she's met someone and she's invited him over for dinner to meet her parents. Beth hadn't been able to hide her surprise at that. Maggie has dated quite a few boys and not once, had she brought any of them home for dinner with the family.

"You won't be too mean to him, will you, daddy?" Beth asks.

"I certainly will be," Hershel answers. "It's my right as a father to torment boyfriends."

Beth can't help, but giggle again.

"Is that Beth?" She can hear Annette calling out and then a moment later, her mom appears, gently pushing Hershel to the side so both of them can be seen on the screen. "Hi, honey."

Beth smiles. "Hi, mom."

"You're glowing," Annette smiles warmly. "I told you, Hershel, that she was glowing a few days ago when we talked last."

"Yes, you did," Hershel agrees with a smile and nod. "And yes, she is."

Beth can't help, but frown a little at that. "Glowing?" She asks.

"The pregnant woman glow. All pregnant women seem to glow at one point or another," Annette says and she's still smiling, but Beth doesn't see anything to smile about.

If she's glowing and her mom and dad can see it, that means anyone can see it, too.

…

Beth wakes up with a gasp and for half a second, she has no idea where she is. Is she at home, back in her room in the farmhouse? Is she in bed with Aiden? Her heart is pounding and she struggles to get her breathing under control – even after she sees that she's in her bedroom in Scott and she's alone.

She flops back down, her head landing on the pillow, and her hands come to a rest on her baby bump. She doesn't know what she was dreaming about; she's already forgotten. But whatever it had been, it had scared her out of a deep sleep and her heart is still racing.

She rubs circles over Little Dot, wanting to be able to feel the baby, but knowing she won't be able to. Not quite yet. She's heard it described as a goldfish swimming around and Beth can't wait for it. Dr. Douglas said some moms feel it as early as thirteen weeks, but she hasn't yet and she wants to ask Dot what she's waiting for.

It takes another moment for Beth to remember what had caused her to wake up. Aiden had found her and he had wanted to take the baby with him. He told her that she didn't make enough and couldn't possibly take care of the baby better than him and his wife could.

Just thinking about it now, Beth's heart begins to speed up again.

She knows it was just a dream. A nightmare. And she tells herself that Aiden will never find her; that he doesn't care enough about her or the baby to even begin looking. As far as he's concerned, she got the abortion like he told her to get. And Scott is so far away from their home and in the middle of nowhere. People outside of this county don't even know Scott's existence. He will never find her or Little Dot here. No one will.

It's just another small Georgia town like the hundreds of others in the state.

"I'll keep you safe," she whispers to her baby, her hands holding her tiny bump. "I'll do anything to keep you safe."

Beth lays there, wide awake, and finally, she pulls herself from the bed. She checks all of the windows to make sure they're locked – though there's no reason why they wouldn't be – and she then double-checks the front door to make sure that that is still locked as well.

First thing tomorrow, she's going to go speak with Daryl about possibly adding a couple more locks. There's no such thing as being too safe.

Once she sees for herself that she is locked up good and tight in her apartment, she turns and gets herself a glass of water from the kitchen before going into the living room, taking a blanket and curling up on her couch. She can't imagine getting herself back to sleep right now. She turns on the television, but doesn't actually watch any of it. Instead, she seems to spend the next few hours, staring at her _locked_ front door until the sun comes up.

…

* * *

 **Thank you very much for reading and please take a moment to review! I hope it won't take me too long for my next update, but thank you in advance for being patient with me!**


	11. Chapter 10

**Thank you for being patient with me. I'm hoping this week is a little more calm at work than last week was. And I hope you like this chapter and that it was worth the wait! Thank you for your support!**

* * *

…

 **Ten.**

Daryl has just filled Lemon's bowls with fresh water and fresh cat food and set them on the floor in the kitchen when there's a hurried knock on the door. He can't help, but glance at the clock on his microwave and when he does, he frowns.

It's just a few minutes after five. Who the hell would be here, bugging him already? He's still in his sweatpants for God's sakes.

He is frowning when he goes to the door and unlocks it, but when he pulls it open and sees who it is, his frown disappears within seconds.

"Beth?" He says her name as if he can't quite believe that she's standing there.

And he'll never tell her, but she looks like shit. There is a quilt wrapped around her shoulders, and she's still wearing her pajamas as well, and it looks like she didn't sleep at all the night before; dark circles forming beneath her eyes.

"What the hell happened?" He asks and he's almost demanding, but something obviously happened for her to be looking like that, being at his door at five in the morning, and he can feel his heart starting to pound in his chest.

Beth shakes her head and tears pool in her eyes and Daryl doesn't think about it. He just reaches out and cupping his fingers lightly around her elbow, he pulls her into his apartment, closing the door behind her. Lemon sees her and abandons his bowls immediately to come darting towards her, weaving himself in and out from between her ankles and finally, Beth smiles faintly down at the kitten.

She exhales a deep breath. "I'm sorry," she says with a shake of her head again and she tilts her head to look to his face. "I'm sorry for just coming over here so early."

"I don't care 'bout that," he tells her and he really doesn't. If she's over here this early in the morning, there's a damn good reason for that and Daryl's not letting her go back to her apartment until he finds out what that reason is. "Somethin's goin' on so tell me."

Beth pauses and he can see a barrage of thoughts pass across her face – as if she's thinking of every reason why she's over here right now – and he almost finds himself holding his breath, getting himself ready to hear whatever she's about to say. But then, she shakes his head and he can't quite understand the disappointment he feels from that.

"I… I think Little Dot is just making me crazy," Beth then says. "It's nothing."

"Bullshit," Daryl can't help, but snort and Beth's eyes widen slightly with surprise at that. He glances towards the clock before back at her. The words leave his mouth before he can even register them himself. "You wanna get some breakfast before work?" He asks.

Beth opens her mouth, but no words are spoken and she slowly closes it again. Not for the first time, he can see her thinking. Girl has the most open face of anyone he's ever met. She'd be the most shit poker player.

Beth's mouth opens again. "That sounds nice," she then says with the faintest of smiles.

Daryl tells himself to look away from it. It's like she's Medusa or something. He looks at that smile, he'll turn to stone. But the thing with Beth is the girl has absolutely no idea she has such a power to her and Daryl doesn't understand why he's giving it to her.

But, to real no surprise to him, Beth smiles and he can't seem to look at anything else.

"There's a Denny's right across the street from the jail. You think you can be ready in 'bout an hour?" He asks. "That'll give us plenty of time to eat without havin' to rush through it."

"I'll be ready," she promises, practically beaming now and if it wasn't for the dark circles still under her eyes and if she wasn't over here at such an early hour, Daryl would almost think that there was nothing wrong with her at all.

She bends down and gives Lemon a quick rub down his back and then giving Daryl one final smile, she turns and hurries from his apartment, back to her own, leaving Daryl standing there, wondering to himself what the hell has just happened. He's lost count of how many times he has told himself to stay the hell away from her so what does he do instead?

He invites her to Denny's, to eat breakfast with him, as if it's the most natural thing in the world. First sight of her and he's opening his mouth, telling her to talk to him and putting his hand on her elbow and pulling her into his apartment and he's never been this with another single person in his entire life. Why her? She's pretty, yeah, but he's never been the kind of guy to trip over himself when around a pretty girl. He usually just ignores girls – pretty or not. He ignores _everyone_ and it's worked for him pretty damn good so far.

But not now. Now, the instant he lays eyes on Beth Greene in apartment A2, everything that has worked for him throughout his entire life just gets thrown out the damn window and he finds himself putting himself at her beck and call. Beth Greene snaps her fingers and he's down on his knees at her feet, ready to do her bidding.

Daryl shakes his head as he checks on Lemon, seeing that the kitten has returned to his own breakfast in the kitchen, before he heads into the bathroom for a quick shower. He knows Beth isn't like that. He knows she's not the sort to use a person to her advantage like that. Girl doesn't even know how to use anyone for anything.

The thought would never even cross her mind.

And maybe that's the answer. Maybe it's as simple as an explanation to Daryl as that.

Beth's like him. What you see with her is what you get.

And that's… refreshing as hell, if he's being honest. It won't matter that that baby's daddy is a complete asshole and if Daryl ever sees him, it will be hard to _not_ punch him in the face, because that baby is going to have Beth as its mama and that's pretty damn lucky already. She'll raise the kid to be good and honest because that's the kind of person she is.

She's not Medusa. She just comes to him when she needs something – whether she wants to admit that to him or not – and Daryl stands under the hot spray of water streaming from the shower head, letting himself admit that he doesn't hate when she does.

…

They drive themselves separately to Denny's since Beth works right across the street and Daryl is going to the latest property Tyreese and Karen have bought at auction to see just how much work this next project is going to be.

They are shown to a booth next to a window and are handed menus.

"Coffee?" The waitress asks.

"Yeah," Daryl nods and turns his cup over so she can fill it from the pot she's carrying.

"And for you, hon?" The waitress looks to Beth.

"None for me," she shakes her head despite her longing looks directed towards Daryl's cup. "Can I have orange juice to start?"

"You got it. I'll be back in a few to take your order," the waitress says and then leaves them alone and Daryl pushes the menu back towards the end of the table, not needing it.

Beth, however, opens hers and begins looking it over. "I've never been here before," she admits, lifting her eyes to look at Daryl.

Daryl smirks, taking a sugar packet and shaking it between his index finger and thumb. "Damn, girl. Where you been your whole life?" He asks and she smiles.

He figures she's wearing makeup, because the circles under her eyes aren't that obvious anymore, but she still looks tired as hell. At least, to him, she does and he wonders if anyone else will be able to notice or if it's just some special skill he has towards her.

"Get the Grand Slam," Daryl then tells her. "'s what I always get. Two eggs, two bacon, two sausage and two pancakes. It'll fill you and lil' Dot up, for sure."

Beth smiles again and finds it in the menu, looking it over. "That is definitely the right choice," she agrees, but continues looking through the menu to see what else there is. "Oh my gosh. Daryl, look. At. This."

She turns the menu around so he can see what she's looking at. The final page filled with the milkshakes and other desserts and one of them has her attention more than the others and Daryl smirks again when he sees it.

"It's too early for this. …isn't it?" Beth asks, her eyes looking to the picture longingly.

"Get what you wanna get," Daryl shrugs. "Thought pregnant women got to use that to their advantage when it came to eatin' whatever the hell you wan'."

The waitress comes back and they both order the Grand Slam breakfast with sunny-side up eggs and then Beth takes a deep breath as if she's about to break some silent rule.

"Can I also get a Cake Batter milkshake?" She asks.

The waitress only smiles, adding it to her ordering pad. "You got it, hon."

And then she takes their menus and leaves the table and Beth exhales the deep breath as if relieved that the waitress hadn't told her no, she couldn't get that. Daryl can't help, but smile a little as he lifts his coffee cup, bringing it to his lips.

"I hope Amy won't be too mad, but I think this milkshake is going to replace her chocolate cake as my sweet of choice," Beth says with a smile.

"You've met Amy?" Daryl asks.

"Yep," Beth nods and pulls the paper wrapping away from her straw before dunking it into her glass of orange juice. "Since I'm in Magnolia's just about every day, we introduced ourselves. She's really nice and goodness, I wish I could cook and bake like her."

"Yeah, she's got a good thing goin' on," Daryl agrees, but he really doesn't want to talk about Amy if he's being honest. He takes a sip of coffee and then puts his eyes back on Beth, noting her smile at him. "Wha'?" He asks and wonders if he actually wants to know though.

"Do you have a crush on her?" Beth then asks playfully.

Daryl nearly drops his coffee cup. "course I don't," he frowns at her. "What the hell gives you the idea that I do?"

Beth keeps smiling and shrugs. "I don't know. You look uncomfortable."

"cause _she_ makes me uncomfortable," Daryl answers, still frowning. "Always smilin' and flirtin' with me. I don't like it."

Beth giggles a little as if she's getting a huge kick out of this. "I've noticed that. I've also noticed that she does that with just about every male who comes into Magnolia's." Daryl looks at her, his frown lessening, but still on his face. "Some women are like that. They don't mean to be, but being overly friendly to the opposite sex is just who they are. I do think Amy flirts with you, but I also think that it doesn't mean a thing. At least not to her."

Daryl's quiet for a moment, thinking that over. "Huh," he then says and sips his coffee.

Come to think of it, she's always throwing smiles at Shane and Rick, too, but maybe Shane and Rick never think it's anything more than smiling since the whole town of Scott knows that they're married men. But now, according to Beth, Amy smiles at every guy so maybe it's really nothing more than smiling and being friendly in a way he's really not used to.

"You bein' serious?" He then asks.

Beth just keeps on smiling. "I'm a church-going girl, Daryl. I never tell a lie." She takes a sip of her orange juice. "Speaking of church, I need to find a church for me and Dot."

"'s southern Georgia. Spit and you'll hit a church," he says and she laughs at that. He takes another sip of coffee and looks at her. "So since you're a church-goin' girl and never lie, you gonna tell me what that was this mornin'?" He asks and within a second, her smile is gone.

The waitress comes back then with their plates of food and Beth's milkshake.

"You two need anything else?" She asks.

Daryl looks to Beth as she looks down at the plate loaded down with food as if she's never seen anything more amazing.

"Nah, we're good," Daryl shakes his head at the waitress and no sooner that she leaves the table, that he sees Beth has already begun on her eggs and bacon.

Daryl pours maple syrup over everything on his plate and then pushes the jar towards her.

Once her eggs and bacon are gone, Beth takes the syrup and pours it over her pancakes and sausage links and then sighs heavily. "I had the most awful dream last night," she finally confesses. "It was… Aiden… the dad, he found me and took Dot away from me."

"That ain't ever gonna happen, Beth," Daryl says and his words are firm and he absolutely means it and it's not surprising to him that he means it.

"I know," Beth says with a nod of her head and she seems to be saying it for her benefit as much as for him. "I read that being pregnant can give you really crazy dreams. It was just so real and I wasn't able to fall back asleep… I came to talk with you this morning about maybe putting a couple more locks on my door."

Daryl looks at her and doesn't say anything and she seems to be making sure she _doesn't_ look at him as she focuses on eating her pancakes and sausage. She's eating like she hasn't eaten in days, but then he reminds himself that he usually eats like that, too, and he doesn't have the excuse of eating for two to do it.

Beth pushes her empty plate towards the edge of the table and sits up a little bit straighter as she now brings her milkshake close in front of her. "Sprinkles are one of those things that just make inexplicably happy," she tells him and Daryl feels like almost smiling at that.

She lifts her eyes and looks at him from across the table and gives him a smile of her own.

Christ, she's beautiful. She really is. He's been alive for a few years now and he knows without a doubt that he's never seen anyone as pretty as Beth. Maybe a sunrise after a good storm or the way the fog hovers over the grass in cool, fall mornings. Daryl's seen plenty of pretty _things_ , but not a person like Beth.

He shifts a little then, as if uncomfortable, and tells himself to not watch her as she starts getting to work on her milkshake.

"I'll go to the hardware store after work," he tells her. "You'll have two new locks on your door in addition to the ones you already got by the time you go to bed tonight."

It's amazing how Daryl can physically see her relax.

"Thank you, Daryl," she says as graciously as he's ever heard a person thank another for anything. "If there wasn't a table between us right now, I'd give you the biggest hug."

Thank Christ there's a table between us, Daryl immediately thinks to himself.

"Can I ask you something?" Beth asks.

Daryl shrugs, trying to show her – and himself – that it doesn't matter much to him what she does. He wonders if she believes it because he sure as shit doesn't.

"Why are there so many buildings in Scott that need renovations?" She asks.

Daryl nearly sighs an air of relief at that. That's a safe question and one he can definitely answer, having heard all of it when Tyreese hired him and told him. He shrugs and their waitress comes back to refill Daryl's coffee cup and to take away their breakfast plates.

"Scott's been around since before the Civil War. Was never a rich town, but it always managed. But then after the war, it took a hell of a long time to recover. But then the Great Depression hit. Never came back from that," he answers her. "'cept for now, with the school and jail and the factory, 's finally on it's way."

Beth nods, understanding. Plenty of poor Southern towns like Scott, still recovering from all sorts of things in history that have happened to them.

"Have you lived here your whole life?" Beth asks after she swallows a mouthful of milkshake, her eyes never leaving him.

Daryl's the one who can't look at her now, leaning over to take another sugar packet, purposely watching himself shake it rather than look at her. "Nah. Only for a few years now. Kind of just stumbled into it."

"I know the feeling," she says and lifting his eyes, finally, he sees her smiling a little at him.

And suddenly, he gets the strangest feeling come over him; like he wants to tell her _everything_. About his mom and his old man and fuck. Even _Merle_. Maybe she is Medusa. What the hell is this girl doing to him?

Daryl takes a gulp of coffee instead and it's too hot and burns his tongue and throat going down, but he doesn't care.

The waitress comes one more time, with their check this time, and before Beth can even reach for her purse, Daryl is already handing over some bills.

"Daryl-" Beth immediately begins to protest, but the waitress leaves and Daryl finishes his coffee and Beth sits there, staring at him.

"Wha'?" He asks once he swallows the last gulp down.

"Mine was more. I should have paid," she says, still frowning.

"Relax. I think I can afford you and Lil' Dot," he says. "Didn't Aiden ever pay for you?" He asks, but immediately wishes he hadn't. What the hell is he doing, bringing that asshole up? He hates him just on principle alone and what he did to Beth, but now, having found out the asshole's name, Daryl realizes his hate makes even more sense.

Aiden _sounds_ like an asshole.

He winces and dares a look at Beth, but she's finishing up her milkshake and she shrugs.

"We'd go out to lunch, but always with other coworkers. And then…" she trails off and goes quiet for a moment and then shakes her head. "We were in hotels so he usually went out to bring something back or we got room service and I'm an idiot," she then says softly. "How long does it take to fumigate a home?"

And like he took her elbow this morning without thinking about it, Daryl doesn't think about what he does now. Beth's hands are on the table and he reaches for one now, not taking the time to note how damn soft her skin is and how a little cold it is now from holding the cold glass the milkshake had been in.

"Nah, Beth. You ain't," he says. "Just 'cause you're innocent don't mean that any jackass should be able to take advantage of you."

Beth looks at him and doesn't say anything, but she's getting that look on her face that he's already beginning to recognize. The look she gets when she's so thankful for something.

Without a word, Beth slowly turns her hand over so her palm presses to his and her fingers curl around his.

He tells himself to rip his hand away, but once again, his mind and the rest of his body seem to be in complete conflict with each other. He's getting really sick of this. And yet… sitting in Denny's with this girl, holding her hand… he tries to remember the last thing that happened to him that was as nice as this is right now.

They finally leave a minute later, both having to go to work, and Daryl notes how _empty_ his hand feels now as it hangs limply at his side as they walk back outside into the parking lot.

"That was both so delicious and so terrible," Beth smiles. "Now, I know how delicious Denny's is and Cake Batter milkshakes might become a daily thing now. And I'll justify it by walking to and from here from the jail and telling myself at least I'm getting exercise."

Daryl smirks a little and shoves his hands in the pockets of his jeans because he has to do something with them before he does something as stupid again as reaching out to touch her. He knows her skin is soft. He doesn't need to feel it again.

"Daryl," she says in a soft voice and Daryl looks down at her, swallowing a dryness clawing at his throat. She's so little compared to him. It immediately makes him want to puff out his chest and protect her no matter what that means. "You're one of the nicest people I've ever met and I can't thank you enough for everything you've already done and keep doing for me."

Daryl swallows again. "Must not know that many people, girl, if 'm one of the nicest."

Beth just gives him the faintest of smiles and she shakes her head and then standing on her toes, her hand braces against his bicep and her lips find a home on his cheek.

Daryl stands there, not moving a single muscle and screaming at himself in his head to not turn his head even a fraction because if he does, his lips will be touching hers – that's how close to them she is – and his body damn well better listen to his mind this one time because if it doesn't…

Christ, her lips are as soft as the rest of her. He realizes that he was afraid of that. Maybe if her lips were chapped, it would be easier to not care...

But he knows that's a lie, too. Girl could have lips like sandpaper and he'd still want them on him. Because they belong to her.

…

* * *

 **Thank you so much for reading and please take a moment to review!**


	12. Chapter 11

**I've never written Beth quite like this before with this particular opinion of things and it's a little nerve-wracking, to be honest. She will change as the story develops, of course, but for now, writing her this way is important - and a little difficult. I find myself sometimes really struggling with her POV chapters.**

* * *

…

 **Eleven.**

It's just like Dr. Douglas had warned her about possibly happening. One night, Beth goes to bed with hardly any bump at all and the next morning, she gasps when she looks at herself in the full length mirror she has hanging on her closet door. She's pregnant. She is _definitely_ pregnant and there is no hiding it anymore.

Thank goodness it's Saturday though. She can go to Belk in Baker and get herself some maternity clothes and take the weekend to be a hermit until she has to go to work on Monday and have everyone know. She is already dreading what Rick is going to say to her. She knows he can't fire her for being pregnant, but maybe he will come up with another reason to get rid of her. Or maybe he'll have her go back to the file room and while she had enjoyed the file room, she has already fallen in love with working the intake desk – which is completely surprising to her because never in her wildest dreams did she ever imagine herself working at any type of jail facility; and not only work there, but actually like it.

No two days are the same and though it gets to be sad, seeing the kids come in with handcuffs on their wrists and being brought in on some pretty serious charges, she likes to think that maybe them coming here will set them straight. She knows that's not always the case. Some of the kids she books, she can see their records that take a few scrolls of the computer mouse, they are so long, but still… maybe this is the arrest that will change them.

She knows it's probably hopelessly naïve of her. Shane and Martinez and a few of the other officers and guards in the jail have let her know, but if they think she is naïve, she thinks that they are all incredibly jaded.

Beth makes her bed and then goes into the bathroom to take a shower and standing under the hot spray of water, she finds herself unable to stop from running the bar of soap over and over the much more predominant bump. Her baby bump. She can't stop smiling. She's scared of everyone's reaction and now having the bump more visible, it makes everything so much more real – as if it hasn't been real up until this point – and she's a little – a _lot_ – terrified herself, but this is her baby and they're really there and she can't wait for her next doctor's appointment and her next ultrasound so she can see her little Dot again.

Though her baby is definitely not a dot anymore.

After drying her hair and pulling it back into a ponytail, Beth then tries to decide what to wear. A dress might be the best bet and she can only hope that _one_ of them fits until she get herself to Belk and buys some new ones. She also has been wanting to go to the Costco over in Baker as well and get herself joined up as a member. She can stockpile on boxes of diapers and baby food and toilet paper and paper towels and boxes of Cheez-Its.

Changing her mind at the last moment, Beth tugs on a pair of black Capri yoga pants and an over-sized tee-shirt she had borrowed from Shawn years earlier and never gave back to him. She looks at herself in the mirror one more time before leaving the bedroom. Oh, yeah. She is definitely pregnant. No hiding it now.

Beth goes into the kitchen and pours herself a big glass of milk – doctor's orders – and then fixes herself two pieces of toast, smearing them with blueberry jam. She has been in Scott for a couple of months now. It doesn't feel like it though. It feels like she's always been here. She's both amazed and grateful that she's been able to build a home for herself and her baby in such a short amount of time. Considering she had left home with a purse full of money and absolutely no plan except to drive and keep driving, she is doing pretty great.

She's gotten herself a nice place to live, a good job, a bank account, a library card, baby furniture – that still has to be put together, but still, she has it – and she has friends, too.

Her eyes wander over to her front door where she has two brand new locks and a chain lock as well. She had come home from work two days earlier to find Daryl on his knees, screwing them all in, and once finished, he had given her a brand new key that works on all of them. She keeps the key on a chain always around her neck so she can never lose it. She knows she's probably being paranoid, but she doesn't care. There is no such thing as "too safe" when it comes to Little Dot and keeping him or her safe from anything and everything.

Daryl has been an amazing person towards her. He doesn't think so, but she can't imagine how she would have done anything she's done in Scott if it hasn't been for him.

And she knows now that it isn't Little Dot that is making her stomach clench whenever she sees the man. She knows it's all Daryl and Beth honestly isn't sure how she feels about that. After Aiden, she had never expected herself to get stomach tugs around another man ever again. How could she? Aiden had used her, had taken her heart and he had more than crushed it. He had taken it and completely shattered it into a million pieces before scooping those pieces up and grinding them in a garbage disposal with no hopes of ever being able to put them together again. She had loved Aiden with everything she had inside of her. And he hadn't cared. He had just wanted her because she was young and stupid enough to fall for anything he said to her.

She knows Daryl is nothing like Aiden – on the outside as well as on the in. Aiden had been charming and sweet and she knows now that he had been a snake-oil salesman. There had been no substance behind his smiles. But Daryl, Beth knows that what she sees with the man is what she gets. She's not calling Daryl simple-minded in any means, but Daryl _is_ simple. He doesn't seem to have in him the inclination to give any one a dose of bullshit – unless they need it. He's probably the most honest man she's ever met behind her daddy.

Finished with breakfast, Beth brushes her teeth and puts on her Converse sneakers, noting that her feet are a little swollen and it seems like she won't be able to wear heels for much longer. And her sneakers feel like Heaven right now.

She unlocks the three deadbolts and then unchains the chain lock and steps from her apartment. And as she locks her front door again, she hears a door open behind her and she looks over her shoulder to see that it's Daryl, stepping from his own apartment. He stills when he sees her and she gives him a smile, ignoring the pull that is now all-too familiar when she sees him.

She's not even entirely sure when she started getting pulls in her stomach from him, but she tells herself to forget it because she doesn't want a man and what man would want her when she is looking like this?

"Good morning," Beth greets him happily and with the locks all turned and her door securely locked now, she turns towards him, putting the chain with the key back around her neck. "Are you working today?"

"Nah," Daryl shakes his head. "Tyreese and Karen are doin' their stuff I don't care about. Pickin' out paint colors and tiles and it takes all day and it's hell," He says and she giggles.

He looks at her and Beth feels her cheeks blush because he's looking at her stomach.

"I know," she says with a little laugh. "No hiding it now."

Daryl shrugs. "Not sure why you thought you had to hide it in the first place. You ain't the first pregnant woman in the world."

"I think Eve is actually the only woman who can ever say that," she says with a smile. Daryl just looks at her. "Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden and once they were cast out, Eve had two sons-"

"Yeah, I know," he gives a nod.

"I'm sorry," she laughs then with a shake of her head, feeling embarrassed. "I have no idea why I'm giving Bible study in the hallway."

She can see his own lips twitch at that, which makes her feel a little bit less mortified, and together, they walk outside, heading towards the parking lot.

"Where you headin'?" He asks as he seems to be fiddling with his keys in his hands.

"The Belk in Baker," Beth answers. "I need some maternity clothes. And then I was going to go to Costco and get myself a membership. What about you?"

He seems almost confused for a moment – a furrow between his brows that Beth wants to ask him about, but she's not entirely certain why. It's none of her business.

"I was goin' to Belk, too," he says as if he can't really believe it.

"Oh," Beth says, feeling taken aback as well. Of all the places in the world they could both be going to on that Saturday morning, they leave their apartments at the same time to go to the same place.

The old Beth, the Beth before Aiden, would think that this is fate or something along those lines. The old Beth had been a firm believer in fate and everything happening for a reason. She misses that person sometimes. All the time.

"I'll drive you," he then is quick to offer.

Beth feels her eyes widen. "Oh, Daryl. You don't have to do that. I'll be trying on clothes and I don't know how long that will take and it will… you'll be bored out of your mind. You might as well have gone tile shopping."

Daryl is quiet for a moment, thinking that over, and then he shrugs. "Ain't got nothin' else to do today. And I'm a member of Costco already and need to pick up a few things. You sign up for your card and if you wanna get somethin' in the meantime, you can use mine today."

Beth stares up at him and they stand between her car and his truck and she feels tears stinging her eyes. She tells herself it's just the sun and her eyes being sensitive to the brightness of it, but deep down, she knows that that's not it all.

Deep down, she knows it's because she wishes that she had met Daryl first.

…

"Alrigh'," Daryl says once they are in the cool interior of the department store. "I'm gonna go get my stuff and I'll come find you. Sounds good?"

"Sounds great," Beth smiles up at him. "I'll be in maternity, trying to find something that doesn't make me look like a whale."

Daryl is quiet for a moment and then he visibly swallows and gives her a nod. "See you in a bit," he says and he turns, walking away towards the men's department.

Beth can't help, but watch him walk away and her eyes _really_ can't help, but drift down to his butt in his blue jeans. She's never paid much attention to butts on guys, but Daryl seems to have a very nice one. Feeling a flush across the back of her neck, Beth quickly looks away and she swallows down the sudden cotton ball that is lodged in her throat. She has no idea where _that_ thought came from.

Before she finds the maternity section, she really needs to find a water fountain. She is in desperate need of a quick drink. Maybe that will help clear her throat and cool her down.

…

Daryl finds her about forty minutes later when she is just coming out of the dressing room in a floral-printed dress so she can see herself in front of the three mirrors.

"Hi," she smiles at him brightly. "What do you think?" She asks and turns towards the mirrors, Daryl standing behind her, at the entrance of the dressing room area. "I was afraid such a loud print would be too much, but I actually really like how I look in it."

She runs her hands down her front and then winds up hugging her bump. It had taken some getting used to at first, dressing with this bump now attached to her body, but she can feel Little Dot moving around inside and Beth finds herself getting more and more excited to figure out what fits her new body.

And the saleswoman has thankfully been a huge help, helping her find dresses, bras and underwear as well as new jeans and shirts to wear on Beth's off time.

She realizes that Daryl never answered her and Beth turns around, away from the mirrors, to face him. He's staring at her and not saying anything. "Does this one not look good?" She asks and she feels nervous all of a sudden, not sure if she likes the way he's looking at her. She wonders if she truly looks terrible – not just in this dress, but being so pregnant now.

Beth's eyes lower unsurely to her body. She's always been a bit on the small size. Small body, small hips, small breasts. While the other girls seemed to bloom in school, Beth had often felt that she would look like some prepubescent twelve-year-old forever. It has taken her quite a few years to realize that this is how she's built and there's nothing wrong it.

But now, with this pregnant belly and her breasts growing in size, too, she probably looks ridiculous. She wonders if she should just buy a tent and wear that for the next four months of her pregnancy since she will only continue to grow in size.

"You look amazin'," Daryl suddenly says and Beth's eyes fly up to look at him. He's staring at her and doesn't say anything else and he doesn't even move.

Beth instantly feels herself blush and her stomach clenches and her heart does this little flip that it hasn't done in so long. She smiles and looks down at herself in the dress.

"Thank you, Daryl," she says, lifting her head, finding him still looking at her.

He then clears his throat and adverts his eyes away and she has that feeling again that she had had outside of Denny's a few days before. And just like outside of Denny's, she doesn't fight it now either. She knows she should. She knows that she's doing something stupid and goodness. Isn't she tired of doing stupid things already?

But she ignores her mind and goes with what her heart wants her to do – which is how she's gotten into the situation with her life that she's in right now, but she's not going to think about that either right now.

Beth steps forward and standing on her toes, she kisses his cheek.

His skin is warm and rough and slightly scratchy on her lips from his facial hair.

She likes the feel of everything about him.

When she places herself back down on her feet, Daryl is noticeably flushing and he's not meeting her eyes for anything right now. She nearly opens her mouth to apologize to him even though it would be a lie because she's not sorry about kissing his cheek. It's almost frightening about how sorry she isn't for doing it. But he's so uncomfortable by it and that's the only reason why she would apologize; as well as promise she'll never do it again.

She wonders what Daryl thinks of her.

Young, single girl – pregnant – who had an affair with a married man and it doesn't matter to Beth that she didn't know Aiden was married at the time of falling for him. She doesn't care if everyone in the world tells her that that's not her fault. Beth will always blame herself for that. And she will always feel immense guilt when she thinks of Aiden's wife; the woman having no idea about Beth and Beth knows that she's probably not the only woman Aiden has cheated with.

And now, here she is, not learning her lesson, and practically throwing herself at another man while so visibly pregnant with another man's baby.

But before she can say anything – non-truth or not – Daryl clears his throat.

"You 'bout ready to go?" He asks, finally glancing back towards her.

"Yes," she gives him a small smile. "I just have to get the other things from the dressing room. The saleswoman already told me that I can wear one of the dresses out of here."

She turns and hurries back down the hall towards her dressing room, sitting down to tug on her Converse sneakers once more, and then standing up, gathering all of her things in her arms. She makes sure she has her key around her neck and her purse. Being pregnant is starting to make her forget the most simple of things. At work the other day, she had stared at her computer for nearly three minutes before she could remember her log-in password was _Hershel_.

Daryl is still standing in the exact spot where she left him and he stands a little straighter when she sees him coming and she can't seem to stop from smiling when she sees him. Daryl Dixon makes her inexplicably happy. Like sprinkles.

"Give me that stuff," he says when she's close enough.

"Daryl, no-" Beth begins to protest, but Daryl doesn't listen as he takes all of her clothes from her arms into his and she's suddenly very glad that she had put the bras and underwear between the clothes so he won't be able to see them or touch them directly.

There is a check-out in the maternity section and currently with no line, they head there. The saleswoman who has been helping Beth is behind the register and smiles when she sees them both approaching.

"You have everything you need?" She asks.

"Oh, yes. And you were a massive help," Beth says graciously. "I can't thank you enough."

"It's what I'm here for," The woman smiles. She takes the scanner and leaning over the counter, she hits the price tag hanging on Beth's dress and then gently tears it off.

Daryl has dropped everything on the counter and then pulls back a box that he had been holding before taking all of her things. "This is separate," he then says, taking a small step back so Beth can check out without him right next to her.

Beth turns towards him and without discussing it, she takes the box from his hands, too fast for him to realize it, and she plops it down with her things. "This, too," she smiles at the woman before pulling her wallet out of her purse.

From the corner of her eye, she sees Daryl stepping forward and she quickly moves herself to stand in front of him, blocking him off.

"Beth, stop. I'm payin' for that myself," he frowns at her.

"Nope. I'm paying for it," she says and the saleswoman quickly scans the box and puts it into a bag with the clothes she has already scanned. Beth keeps beaming and then looks back at Daryl, smiling wider upon seeing him scowling. "You bought me breakfast _and_ put locks on my door _and_ drove me here. I didn't know you drank tea," she then comments on the yellow tea-pot that she has just bought.

He looks at her and she just keeps smiling and after a moment, he exhales a deep sigh.

"'s for Karen. Her birthday's on Monday and she collects 'em," he answers.

"That is really sweet," she says and his blush is becoming almost familiar to her.

But this time, thankfully, she is able to control himself and is able to stop herself before she can kiss him on the cheek again because this time, she doesn't want to kiss his cheek.

Beth wants to feel if Daryl's lips are as warm and rough as his skin and she looks away at that, back to the saleswoman and watching as her total increases with each new item scanned, and she does her best to ignore the warmth on her neck and the intense clenching in her stomach.

That clenching definitely isn't Little Dot, but she's going to lie and tell herself that it is.

…

They go to Costco next and last and Beth makes a move to push the massive cart, but Daryl gently moves her to the side so he can push it himself – Beth decides to let that go without protesting – and he flashes his card so they can get in.

"What do you need?" Beth asks as she follows his lead as he heads towards the back of the massive warehouse first, where the bakery and butcher is. "Meat?"

"Nah. Never buy meat in the store," he says with a shake of his head.

Beth looks at him with wide eyes. "Are you a vegetarian?" She asks, not believing it.

Daryl smirks as if he's never heard anything funnier than that. "You jus' saw me eat bacon and sausage at breakfast. And we had hot dogs at Rick's."

Beth blushes. "Right, sorry. I forgot." Beth gives him a small smile. "So, why don't you buy meat in a store?"

"Cause I hunt the meat I eat," he answers and stops in the bakery, looking over the massive containers of cookies.

"I didn't know you hunt."

"'cause you never asked."

"I didn't even know _to_ ask," Beth says, fighting the urge to roll her eyes, while smiling and she can't help, but bump him playfully with her arm and Daryl does something then.

He actually smiles. At her. He looks up from the cookies, turns his head, and smiles at her.

And it's beautiful.

 _He's_ beautiful.

Oh, no. The clenching in her stomach intensifies and it's not Dot this time either. She can't lie to herself and says that this clenching is anything, _but_ Daryl.

And what is the matter with her that she would be getting a clenching from any man? Just a couple of months ago, she had come to Scott, completely broken with a shredded heart, crying herself to sleep and so scared because she had no idea what she was doing or what she was going to do to give her and her baby a good life.

Men had been the absolute last thing on her mind.

And they should still be.

She can't think about men. She has a baby on the way and that baby has to be her top priority no matter what. She followed her heart once and it nearly destroyed her. She can't do that again. She won't. She refuses to. Her stomach can clench around Daryl as many times as it wants to. She doesn't care.

Her heart has given her nothing, but pain, and she refuses to be in pain any longer.

And a beautiful man like Daryl Dixon with such a beautiful smile and who is so helpful with anything she could possibly need from someone would bring her nothing, but pain. It would be inevitable. Something so beautiful has no choice, but to end horribly and Beth is going to fight with every fiber of her being to keep it from her life.

…

* * *

(Belk is a store in the South that is kind of like Kohl's.)

 **Thank you so much for reading and please take a moment to review!**


	13. Chapter 12

**To those who celebrate, I hope you had an amazing Easter holiday. I took four days off from writing and it has been wonderful for my mind. I wrote this chapter and the whole time, I was thinking how excited I am to write Beth's chapter next.**

* * *

…

 **Twelve.**

"Did you know?" Rick asks the second Daryl walks into his office.

Daryl nods his head as he sits down in the chair across from Rick's desk. "Yeah."

That morning, when he had been helping Tyreese tear off old shingles on the roof of the newest renovation project Tyreese and Karen had won at auction, Karen had come off of the porch where she was scraping the old paint off.

"Daryl!" She called up to him, holding the cell phone. "Phone call!"

Daryl doesn't have a cell phone for himself; doesn't believe in them; doesn't like the idea of always being able to be found no matter where he is. One time, he was in the truck with Tyreese, heading out for lunch, and Tyreese's cell phone had dinged and a computer started telling him that there was an accident on Cline so getting to Magnolia's would take five minutes instead of three. The whole thing had freaked Daryl the hell out. How the hell had the cell phone know they were going to Magnolia's in the first place?

If people want to call him one of those crazy "off the grid" people, that's fine by him. He's never going to get a cell phone and thankfully, people know that to get a hold of him during the day – though very few people ever need to get a hold of him – they can go through Karen and Tyreese.

Daryl had climbed down from the ladder and took the phone from Karen. "Daryl," he said.

"I need to see you," Rick had said without any form of his own greeting. "Lunch? My office?"

"Yeah," Daryl didn't argue because he already knew what it was about.

It's Monday and today is the first day Beth is going to work, being an obvious pregnant women. She had been scared out of her mind; scared that the people at the jail would take one look at her and tell her to leave. They can't have a pregnant woman working the intake desk with arrested kids in handcuffs – some prone to violent outbursts even with cops trying to keep them under control – so close to her.

Daryl isn't going to admit to anyone that he's a little nervous about her at the job, too. He'll admit it to himself, but never out loud to anyone else. He's an idiot who's got himself a crush on a pregnant girl. No one needs to ever know that except for him.

"Why didn't you say anything?" Rick asks.

Daryl frowns at him. "Wasn' my secret to tell. You know that."

Rick does know that and he sighs heavily, deflating in his seat, sitting back. "I'm having her come here on her lunch break so I can talk to her."

"You can't fire her," Daryl sits stiffly in his chair. "'s illegal for you to fire a pregnant woman for bein' pregnant."

Or, he thinks so anyway. It sounds about right and it seems really shitty if an employer _can_ do that to an employee.

Rick is quiet for a moment, staring off somewhere past Daryl's head, deep in thought. He shakes his head then and looks back to him. "I'm not going to fire her. She's too good a worker for me to be an asshole like that," Rick tells him and Daryl wants to be surprised at how relieved he feels, but the truth is, he _is_ relieved that Beth isn't going to lose her job.

He knows how much she actually likes working the intake desk at the jail and he knows how scared she's been about her pregnancy being obvious to everyone because of her job. Dot's not even born yet and in Daryl's opinion, Beth is already an amazing mom. She wants to take the best care of her baby and she needs a job that will give her money to do that.

"Michonne and Lori were both thinking she was," Rick continues. "I guess Beth has this look to her, but I didn't pay attention." He sighs. "I don't know what I'm going to do with her. I guess I could put her back into the file room. I can't have her at the intake desk in her condition." He rubs his hand over his face. "But she's so damn good there and I need her there. Not everyone can be good at that kind of job."

Daryl is quiet for a moment, thinking that over. "You gonna talk to her 'bout it?" He asks.

He can just imagine the Hell Beth will raise if Rick tries to take her away from the desk.

"Today, when she comes and sees me," Rick nods. He then looks to Daryl, looking at him closely for nearly a full minute and Daryl's brow furrows as he frowns at the man. Rick then smirks a little and shakes his head. "I really like that girl," he then says.

Daryl keeps frowning. "Yeah, she's okay."

And he feels like an ass for saying something like that about Beth, because she's just not okay. Not even close. But he's not going to do anything about it. He's got a crush on a pregnant girl and that's a disaster waiting to happen. What does he think he's going to do? Be a daddy to Beth's baby? He doesn't want that and he's not _looking_ for that. He never wanted kids and he's not looking to get any.

Having a crush on Beth is stupid, he knows, but that's why he's never going to speak about it. Hell, he barely admits it to himself though when he does, he doesn't deny it. He likes her, he knows, but he sure as hell is going to be the only one who does ever know.

And it's as if Rick can read his mind in that moment because he smiles a little bit. "Okay?"

Daryl feels himself stiffen a bit and he shrugs and doesn't say anything.

"You've been spending a lot of time with her," Rick continues and Daryl's frown grows. That's been obvious, but he doesn't like other people pointing it out to him. "You like her?"

Daryl just stares at the man across from him and clenches his jaws together and doesn't say a word though he is wondering why Rick is asking him that. _That_ hasn't been obvious, has it? That's really the last thing Daryl needs; Beth knowing that he likes her.

"I think she likes you, too," Rick says with a little smile, leaning forward, resting his arms on his desk. "I like the way she smiles at you. Michonne smiles like that at me sometimes, too. It's a great feeling; knowing that there's a person in the world who's happy just to see you."

Daryl snorts and shakes his head.

He is _not_ going to imagine that Beth smiles at him like he's _anything_. Just some guy who lives across the hall from her and helps her out with thing sand sometimes gives his cheek the softest kisses he's ever know. That's all that is and that's all he is. Just some guy. And he damn well is going to keep himself as just that.

"Just what I need," Daryl finally speaks. "Some pregnant girl moonin' over me. She's barkin' up the wrong tree."

There is a quiet throat clearing behind him and then a soft knock on the open office door. Daryl freezes and the hairs on the back of his neck spike up and he doesn't have to turn around to see who it is. Oh, fuck. He really doesn't want to turn around and look at her, but as is becoming normal when it comes to this girl, his brain and the rest of him aren't exactly in agreement and Daryl finds himself turning in his chair.

"You wanted to see me, Sheriff Grimes?" Beth asks, standing in the doorway. "I was told up front that I could come right back."

Looking at her, Daryl feels his entire stomach sink to his feet.

She's not even looking at him, keeping her eyes set on Rick and nothing else.

She's wearing one of her maternity dresses that she had bought at Belk that weekend and her hair is down and a little wavy and the dress is a soft pink that seems to match her skin and she looks so damn beautiful – especially with the way her bump is sticking out and her dress falls smoothly over it. She still won't look at him though even as he gets to his feet.

If he was stupid enough to have hoped she hadn't heard him, he knows there's no point in hoping for that. She heard; heard what he had said about her and how he had sounded as if it was the last thing in this world that he wanted.

Daryl swallows. And it's not like he can tell her he likes her. She'll never believe him now.

Rick stands up with a small smile. "Come on in, Beth. Daryl," he looks to him and Daryl turns his head to look back to the Sheriff. "I'll see you later."

"Yeah," Daryl hears himself say without even really registering it. His eyes go back to Beth.

She glances over at him – for just a second – before she leaves the doorway and steps into the office and her eyes are looking at anything, but him once more.

Daryl heads out of the office, but pauses beside her. He doesn't know what to say to her even though he wants to say something to her right now more than ever before.

"Hi," he then says and nearly smacks his forehead over the stupidity of it.

Beth glances up at him. "Hi, Daryl," she then says softly before looking away again and stepping further into the office – and away from him – and Daryl has never felt more of an asshole in his life then he feels right now.

…

Of course, the rest of the day, he can't get Beth off his mind and his stomach remains in his boots. She's already been feeling so damn depressed over that jackass Aiden and being here, pregnant and alone and away from her family, and they have been spending time together and Beth had probably thought they were friends. Hell, Daryl's thought that, too.

And he likes it; likes the idea of having her as a friend when they can spend time together – watching movies and going to Denny's and going on Costco runs and he already promised her that he would help paint Dot's nursery and help put the crib together and he's doing all of this for her because he _likes_ her. Likes her more than he's ever remembered liking a girl before and yeah, she's pregnant and that makes things a little complicated, but once she has the baby, she'll still be Beth and he really likes Beth.

But he's messed it all up now and he has no idea what he can do to set it right again.

When he gets home, there's a moving van in the parking lot and the last tenants are moving into the last apartment on the second floor across from Morales family that day. A married couple and the husband, Simon, is going to be working at the car parts factory as well and the wife, Hannah, is going to be doing… something. He can't remember right now.

Because that's not what has Daryl's attention at the moment. Besides the moving van, there is another van in the parking lot. A white panel van with _Monet Painting_ on the side. Daryl frowns when he sees it. Everyone knows that they have to talk to him before they do any painting and the only person who has talked to him – and has gotten permission – is Beth.

"Hi, Daryl!" Eliza exclaims when she sees him, both her and her brother drawing on the sidewalk with their bucket of chalk again. "Can we come see Lemon?"

"Yeah, in a lil' bit," Daryl manages to grunt at them before heading inside.

Beth's apartment door is open and stepping out of the way of two movers carrying a couch up the stairs, Daryl doesn't stop himself from stepping inside.

"One wall won't cost you a lot or take too much time at all," Daryl hears a male voice saying.

Daryl tells himself to get the hell out of there, but as usual, the rest of his body isn't in agreement and he turns down the small hallway, finding Beth and another man standing in Dot's nursery, staring at the wall that has the closet on it. Neither see him there standing in the doorway – yet.

"You know what you're having yet?" The man asks her and he's wearing jeans a white tee-shirt with _Monet Painting_ on red letters printed on the back.

Beth shakes her head and she's still wearing the pink dress that she had been wearing when Daryl saw her earlier that day and her feet are bare now and her hair is pulled up into a ponytail. She also has the windows open to help get a breeze blowing in the rooms.

"Not yet. I have an appointment in a couple of days and I hope to find out then," Beth answers with a smile, one of her hands resting on her bump. "But no matter if it's a boy or a girl. I like having neutral colors in here."

"Yeah, the gray will look great," the man agrees and Daryl frowns at the back of his head.

She's hiring someone to paint. Why the hell would she do that?

Don't be an idiot, Daryl, he says to himself. He knows damn well why Beth would hire someone to paint the wall that he had already promised to paint for her. After what she overheard him say in Rick's office earlier this afternoon, does he still expect her to come to him and ask him for _anything_? He'll be lucky if she ever talks to him again if he's being honest with himself.

 _Just what I need. Some pregnant girl moonin' over me._

Beth heard that and probably now thinks that she's been annoying him this whole time. How could anyone hear what he said and _not_ think that? And Daryl has no idea how to tell her that she's never annoyed him or bothered him and he likes spending all of his free time with her, talking with her and getting to know her.

How can he say that he _likes_ her?

He know there's no way he can ever say any of that and have it come out right. Talking just… it just isn't his thing and he's never done a lot of it to be any good at it.

So even though he wants to walk into the room and tell this guy to back off and that he'll be painting Dot's nursery and tell Beth that he's sorry and that he wants to keep spending time with her and that he likes her mooning over him – if she even is – because he's mooning over her, too, Daryl, of course, doesn't do any of that.

Instead, he turns around, still neither Beth or the painter knowing that he's there and he leaves Beth's apartment, heading into his own and closing the door behind him. Lemon's there in an instant, letting out little meows as he rubs himself against Daryl's leg and Daryl bends down, picking the little kitten up in his hand.

He knows Eliza and Louis want to see the animal, but honestly, even though it's still so early, Daryl just feels like locking his door, pulling the shades down and going to bed, not talking to another human being until tomorrow. Maybe an apology he'll actually be able to say to Beth will come to him in his sleep. Yeah, right, he nearly snorts at himself.

But still, it's exactly what Daryl does.

…

"So, what do you think?" Karen asks and Daryl snaps his head out of it because Karen's been talking for a few minutes now and he realizes that he hasn't really been listening.

He gets the gist of it though. "A barbecue?" He echoes the word as if he's never heard it before and looks to Karen with a frown.

Karen just smiles though. "Yes, a barbecue," she says. They are scraping all of the old paint off of the porch so it can be repainted. Surprisingly, the porch wood is still sound and good and they have no plans to tear it down. They definitely have to repaint it though. "It's our first apartment building that is filled and me and Tyreese should do something for the tenants to show our appreciation."

"Hmmm," Daryl says and doesn't say anything else because he knows Karen's tone well. It's the same tone she uses when asking Tyreese for his opinion on bathroom tiles. She's asking for it, but she really doesn't want it because she's already made up her mind.

"Let's see. There's Beth in A2, Joe and Miranda Morales with their two kids, Eliza and Louis in B2 and then Simon and Hannah Hill in B1. And you of course," Karen ticks on her fingers, putting up another finger while looking at Daryl. "Eight and then nine in another few months," Karen smiles at that. "A baby," she then says happily. "A baby in one of our apartments. It's incredible."

"Why?" Daryl can't help but ask. "'s jus' a baby. Not the first one in the world."

But it _is_ pretty incredible. That apartment building had been falling apart when Tyreese and Karen bought it on the cheap from auction and they and Daryl got to work practically rebuilding the whole thing from the ground up. It took them months and plenty of blood and sweat and money and the end result was pretty amazing. It was a completely different building - clean and painted and polished and practically brand new. Daryl is proud of himself for having worked so hard on that apartment building's renovation and he likes that there are two young kids living in there and soon, a baby, too.

It really gives the building a brand new life.

"I know it's not, Daryl," Karen responds with a roll of her eyes, but she is smiling. "It's just incredible to think of how hard we worked on putting that building back together and now, there's going to be a baby crawling and walking around in those rooms that we fixed."

"Hmmm," Daryl says again and falls quiet as he continues scraping paint off the banister as Karen speaks out loud, going over possible menu ideas.

Daryl's hardly listening to her though and he knows Karen doesn't need him to.

Beth has a doctor's appointment today and she might find out the sex of the baby today. He thinks back on that day she had gotten her first ultrasound and she had been so excited and happy and she couldn't wait to show it to him. Daryl knows it won't be like that this time. He won't know the sex of the baby until he goes over to Michonne and Rick's or Lori and Shane's for a barbecue because Daryl knows that Beth will tell anyone in town before him.

This is why he doesn't talk. He just screws everything up when he does.

He likes that girl so damn much and he doesn't know what to do because he's never liked anyone like this before. He grew up, knowing exactly what people thought about him and said about him, and even living in the trailer park, he was the poorest and dirtiest and none of the other parents wanted their kids playing with him and they definitely didn't want their daughters having anything to do with him.

They all knew the Dixons were as bad they came.

Daryl learned pretty young in life how to be on his own and how to be okay with that.

And then, when he got older, there were a couple of girls – just whoever Merle threw at him and they took pity on him because he was Merle's little brother. But he had never liked any of them. Hell, he doesn't think he's ever liked anyone of the opposite sex _like that_ until Beth moved to town. And what does he do? Put his foot in his mouth the first chance he gets.

Daryl hates himself for that. Hates himself for lying and hates himself for hurting her.

And he hates himself for being so damn clueless because he really likes this girl and he has absolutely no idea what to do about it because he can't figure out how to tell her he's sorry.

 _It's a great feeling; knowing that there's a person in the world who's happy just to see you._

Daryl has never noticed Beth smiling at him in any particular way and if she really was smiling at him like that, Daryl can't imagine her ever smiling at him like that again.

…

* * *

 **Thank you very much for reading and please take a moment to leave a review!  
**


	14. Chapter 13

**Goodness, the response to the last chapter... just, wow! That's all I can say. That and THANK YOU!**

* * *

…

 **Thirteen.**

She cries so much, her chest aches, her throat feels raw, and she falls asleep, exhausted. She cries in the shower the next morning and as she is fixing her usual toast for breakfast and drinking her glass of milk. She cries as she gets dressed and fixes her hair and cries, standing in front of the mirror, giving herself one more look over before she leaves for work. She cries so much, she feels like Alice in _Alice in Wonderland_ , when she cries so much, she floods the room and has to ride in a glass bottle so she doesn't drown.

Beth knows she's crying so much because of the hormones and the pregnancy, but she knows that she's also crying so much because it hurts. It just hurts so much and no matter how hard she tries, Daryl's words just echo over and over again in her head.

 _"Just what I need. Some pregnant girl moonin' over me. She's barkin' up the wrong tree."_

And as she hears him say those words in her mind, a fresh round of tears form and how much can a person cry? She would think her body could no longer produce salt water and should be completely dried up by this point.

She told herself. She told herself again and again to not get close to him and not spend time with him, but she had ignored herself and her brilliant advice and had put him in her life. Or had put herself in his life. She didn't know which way, but either way, they spent time together and she thought… she thought they were friends and her attraction to him was there, but she was so certain that she could be just friends with him without that getting in the way. She had wanted to be friends with him and had thought that maybe, they already were – until he said what she had heard him say to Sheriff Grimes.

"Stop it, Beth," she scolds herself as she wipes at her cheeks and blows her nose, but she can't because she hears those words and thinks of Daryl and Aiden and she had told herself to leave men – _all_ men – alone.

But God, it hurts. So much. This whole time, she's been looking at Daryl and thinking how he's nothing like Aiden, but she knows that's not true anymore. Both have hurt her so badly and how is it that men are so capable and talented in crushing a girl if they want to?

She finally stops crying enough to leave her apartment and go to work – making sure she looks out the peephole in her door before she does so she can be certain that Daryl isn't leaving his apartment at the same time or in the hallway. But the coast is clear and Beth grabs her bag and slips outside her door, locking it behind her before slipping the chain with the key back on around her neck.

"You could have told me," Sheriff Grimes said once she was sitting across from him on the other side of his desk and they were the only two in his office.

Beth shook her head. "I couldn't… I didn't want to give you a reason to not hire me." She swallowed and lowered her eyes from him for a moment. "And I really needed a job."

"I can see that," he smiled a little. He leaned forward then, resting his arms on his desk and looking at her until Beth finally lifted her eyes once again. "Stop being so nervous. I'm not going to fire you. Baby or no baby, you're too good of a worker to just let you go for no reason whatsoever. I'm just not sure what I should do."

Beth looked at him and waited, a lump still in her throat and knots still in her stomach and she could feel a burning in her eyes from Daryl's words she had just heard him say to the Sheriff sitting across from her, but she would not allow herself to cry in front of anyone in regards to Daryl Dixon.

"You're so good at the intake desk, but I can't keep you there in your condition-"

"Please, Sheriff Grimes," Beth interrupted quickly. "I love my job. I didn't think I would, but I do. I love it so much and I should be fine. I just stand and sit behind a desk all day. And like you said, they are cuffed and there's always an officer at their side."

Rick was quiet, staring at her; studying her. "I'm going to be talking to some of my other officers. Maybe I pull one off the street for a while. In your eighth month, you start training them. Do you think you can work that far into your pregnancy?" Rick asked, looking a little unsure, and Beth figured he was probably trying to remember Lori when she was pregnant, years earlier, with Carl.

"I was going to work until my water broke," she confessed.

"That'd be a mess," Rick smiled and for the first time since she woke up that morning, no longer able to hide the fact she was pregnant from her boss or any of those who worked in the jail with her, Beth felt herself smiling, too.

She arrives at the jail now and going to her desk, she locks her purse in her bottom desk drawer with the key that the jail warden had given her. "Just in case," he had said. She then sits down at her computer and boots it up for the day and no sooner has she pressed the power button that the front doors open and Officer Martinez enters, leading a young offender wearing handcuffs up to her desk.

Beth smiles and stands up. "Good morning," she says though really, if a teenager is already being arrested, how good of a morning can it be? "Give me just two seconds more." She sits down again and types her password in quickly and brings up the intake screen.

"Name," she then begins the list of questions that have become familiar to her.

As she types each answer, Beth's eyes keep floating over to the young man's face – particularly to his eyes. It amazes her. Just a few months ago, she had had absolutely no contact with anyone under the influence of drugs. Of alcohol, yes. At work functions after hours and sometimes, Shawn and Maggie would be caught sneaking in after curfew and daddy would be yelling at them, while they stood there, attempting to look sober. But never drugs. She had never had contact with anyone who took any kind of drug.

Now though, being at this job for just a couple of weeks, she picks up her phone and rings the medical wing in the jail. "Good morning," she speaks to who answers the phone, her fingers still typing on the keyboard. "I need a nurse down at the intake desk. Thank you." She hangs up the receiver once more and looks to the offender. "Are you under the influence of any drugs or alcohol at the moment?" She asks though she knows what he'll say to that.

"No," the kid immediately answers.

Beth's eyes look to Martinez. "Caught him smoking weed on the curb," he reveals.

Beth nods and types that into the computer and then looks back to the offender. The kid. He's just thirteen. He's just a child. "Is that all you're taking? Just marijuana?"

The kid doesn't answer her. Unsurprisingly.

The nurse arrives and after looking at the youth's blood-shot eyes, and Beth prints off his wristband to wear, she and Martinez lead him off towards the medical wing to get drug tested because none of them believe that there's _just_ marijuana in his system, but he of course, isn't saying.

Beth isn't naïve and she knows her job isn't a happy one. It's actually quite depressing, to see a stream of kids – and she doesn't care how the others view them; they are still kids – come into the jail, wearing handcuffs and having to be processed and they've done things and are living a life Beth had been blessed enough in her own life to not even have to imagine. And she will do everything she can to make sure her baby won't be exposed to the things these kids have seen and done.

And it's like she's told Shane and others. So many have given up on these kids already. Maybe she's hoping that she can do something – no matter how small it may seem – to help them in any way that she can.

But really, the best part of her job – at the moment – is that it keeps her busy and she doesn't have the time to spend her morning, crying, thinking about men.

She _hates_ men. And she means it. This time, she really is done with them.

…

Beth's morning is busy and it seems like there is a steady stream of kids being brought in to be booked into the jail. She also is in charge of visitors coming in to see one of the kids locked in the jail behind her. Visiting Hours are strictly enforced and don't begin until two o'clock in the afternoon and last until five on Tuesdays and Thursdays, but some get there early in the morning, to make sure that they are registered with enough time to spare. Beth gets them registered and gets them passes and then at one, an officer will come to collect them to lead them back through metal detectors into the visiting area. Also, if they wish to add more money onto their child's commissary, they come see Beth about that, too.

Tuesdays and Thursdays are always her busiest days.

Around noon, the door leading into the lobby and intake area opens and Beth instantly stiffens the moment she sees who it is. Daryl steps in and he's holding a cup in his hand. His eyes land on her and he pauses for a moment and then pushes himself forward, coming towards her. Beth's entire body is braced for the impact and she prays that he's possibly hear to see someone else and not her even though he's walking straight for her.

And just seeing him again, her eyes begin burning with tears again and her stomach clenches – painfully this time and not in the fluttering way it did when he was around. She can feel Dot roll around inside of her as if turning over in their sleep and just feeling her baby and knowing they're in there, Beth straightens her shoulders and juts her chin out slightly. She is not going to give Daryl the satisfaction of knowing that he hurt her as deeply as he truly did. She doesn't care about him. The only thing that matters is her baby and she is going to be sure to teach her baby to not be as stupid as she clearly is in life.

Daryl stops in front of her on the other side of the intake desk. He clears his throat and then sets the cup down on the ledge in front of her. She sees instantly that it's a cake batter milkshake from Denny's and upon seeing it, Beth feels her throat close up.

"Do you have a second?" He asks her. "I brought you this."

"Thank you," she says because no matter what, she's still the proper Southern girl her parents raised her to be. She sometimes hates how polite she always is.

Just once, she wants to channel Maggie and be capable of being a complete bitch to someone without allowing herself to feel guilty about it. If anyone deserves her to be a bitch right now, it's Daryl.

And Aiden.

And every other single man walking around with a penis.

Damn him, because this milkshake looks so good and she's only _thinking_ about throwing it in his face because now that it's in front of her, all she wants to do is inhale it.

"Beth… 'bout what I said… what you heard me say…" Daryl begins to say and Beth doesn't say a word. She just picks the milkshake up, bringing it closer to her, and taking the straw, she tears the paper wrapping away from it. He is swallowing constantly and he is having trouble meeting her eyes and she still doesn't say a word, now drinking her milkshake.

She _almost_ feels bad about how much he seems to be struggling with speaking right now, but she keeps sipping her milkshake and not saying a word. She instead pretends that there is something absolutely fascinating on her computer.

"I can't say 'm sorry enough to you," he finally manages to say and Beth finally, slowly, moves her eyes away from the computer to look at him; looks at him for a moment.

He _does_ seem sorry, but she's learned that men are fantastic actors. If they want to look sorry, if they want to act like they're not married, they're capable of doing it splendidly.

"And you've got every right in the world to not believe me," Daryl continues and Beth wonders for a fleeting moment if he can read minds. "And I got no right to ask you for anythin', but I wan' you to forgive me."

Beth lifts an eyebrow at that. "You _want_?" She throws back at him and he winces.

Daryl quickly shakes his head. "I didn' mean it like that."

The doors open and there are two police officers, leading a teenage boy in, who is struggling with every step of the way. Beth sets her milkshake aside for the moment and opens up to the appropriate screen.

"Name?" She asks once they are on the other side of her desk.

"Fuck you!" The kid snaps at her. Beth hardly blinks an eye though.

He then begins reeling his head back and they all know what he's going to do. Daryl actually steps closer, as if to put himself between the kid and Beth, and the police officers push the kid's head down onto the desk. Again though, Beth hardly blinks an eye. The kid begins struggling in earnest, kicking at the desk and throwing more swears at all of them.

"You need to cool down in the box," one of the officers growls at him and they begin dragging him towards the isolation cell that has no bed, sink or toilet or even a window.

Once they're gone, Beth exhales a breath and picks up her milkshake again.

Daryl just looks at her and he's still stiff from the confrontation and Beth's not sure why, but she feels the need to put him at ease though why she should care, she has no idea.

"It's not the first time one of them have tried to spit on me," she tells him calmly, sitting down again in her chair and taking a generous sip of milkshake.

Daryl doesn't say anything and keeps staring at her.

Beth swallows a mouthful of cake batter milkshake and she feels Dot move again. She has an appointment with Dr. Douglas during her lunch hour today and hopefully, the baby feels like showing them if they are a boy or girl. Beth feels a buzz of excitement at finally knowing what her baby is, but at the moment, it's not her excitement that is overwhelming her. It's the feeling of just laying her head down and crying because Daryl is still standing there, looking at her, and he's brought her a milkshake and apologized and Beth almost hates _herself_ for being so close to just forgiving him.

 _"Just what I need. Some pregnant girl moonin' over me. She's barkin' up the wrong tree."_

She was raised to forgive and forget and move on, but so much has happened to her in the past few months and she feels like it would be perfectly understandable to anyone if she just isn't able to do that anymore.

How many times does she have to be kicked until she learns her lessons and stays away and keeps herself away from everyone?

"Beth…" Daryl begins to say.

Thankfully, the phone chooses that precise moment to ring and Beth turns away from him, answering the call and thankful that she has a legitimate reason to not say anything to him.

…

The gel is cold on her bump and she watches the screen with a held breath in her lungs as Dr. Douglas runs the transducer over her skin. The familiar image of Dot appears on the screen in grainy black and white and as always, when she sees her baby, Beth smiles.

"Alright. Let's see if Baby Greene is feeling cooperative today," he says with a grin.

He's quiet for a passing minute, studying the picture and then he looks back to Beth with that same toothy warm grin of his.

"You want to know?" He asks her though he knows darn well that she does.

"You can tell?" Beth asks eagerly, nearly sitting up on her elbows from the excitement and the anticipation and Dr. Douglas lets out a laugh.

"You are having, from the looks of it, a very healthy baby girl," Dr. Douglas tells her.

And at that, Beth promptly bursts into tears, feeling a warmth rush over her that she has never experienced before and something she knows she probably never will again.

…

Getting home that evening with a baked potato and a piece of chocolate cake carried out from Magnolia's that she is going to eat for dinner while talking to her family and telling that that she is having a daughter, Beth sees that Eliza and Louis Morales are outside, sitting on the building's front steps, a familiar yellow ball of fur in Eliza's lap.

"Hi, Beth," Eliza smiles when Beth nears.

"Hi, guys," Beth smiles warmly in return. "Hi, Lemon," she leans a hand down to scratch the kitten behind his ear. "Daryl's putting quite a bit of weight on you," she comments and Lemon lets out a contented purr and she laughs a little.

"Did you see the flyer?" Louis asks and then points to a hot pink piece of paper taped inside on the wall next to their mailboxes. "Our landlords are giving everyone in the building a barbecue this weekend!" He then exclaims excitedly. "We've never had landlords do that!"

"That's very nice of them," Beth agrees with a nod and small smile.

Of course, her mind doesn't immediately go to the barbecue. It goes to wondering if Daryl is going to be there or not. Of course he would be there. He's building manager and he's helped renovate this whole building and Tyreese and Karen are his bosses and his friends. Beth begins to wonder if she will attend the barbecue or if she'll just, by chance, happen to be busy that day with other things.

Is this how it's going to be? She doing everything she can to avoid seeing him anywhere?

That makes her heart feel heavy and she gives Lemon one more head scratch and says good night to Eliza and Louis as she heads inside, first stopping to get her mail from her box and then going towards her door. She knows he hadn't had a crush on her like she had – _has_ – on him, but still, she thought… she thought that maybe he was a good man who wouldn't hurt her in the same way that Aiden had.

What Aiden had done is far worse – lying about his marriage by not telling her at all and pursuing her and allowing her to help him carry on an affair and then throwing her money, telling her to abort her baby – her _daughter_. Daryl has simply said a few words that had crushed her, which is nowhere on the same level as to what Aiden had done.

But still, she feels as if she's cried as much over Daryl as she ever did over Aiden.

That doesn't feel like it should be right though because Aiden is the man she loved and the father of her child and Daryl is… he's just Daryl.

With a heavy sigh, Beth goes into her apartment and locks the door behind her and goes into the kitchen to get her dinner together. She's relieved that he's not in the hallway and doesn't see her get home from work. She worries that she would have told him that she's having a girl and it might be petty, but she doesn't want to tell him.

She sighs again and turns to the refrigerator to pours herself a glass of milk.

There's nothing _just_ about Daryl and she knows it – no matter what she tries to tell herself.

…

* * *

 **Thank you very much for reading and please take a moment to review! I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!**


	15. Chapter 14

**As always, you guys are amazing. Seriously. I love writing this story and I love knowing that many of you love it, too. I hope you enjoy this chapter. Moving at a glacier pace - those two are so good at that - but I promise things will happen. Soon.**

 **PS - not that it matters to the story at all, but in this chapter, Hannah isn't anyone from the show, but her husband, Simon, is Simon as in Negan's right hand man. I like taking the bad people from the show and imagining who they were before the end of the world.**

* * *

…

 **Fourteen.**

Daryl sips from his bottle of beer and tries to not make it so obvious that he is watching Beth as she talks and laughs with Karen, Hannah Hill and Miranda Morales, the four standing in a circle with plates of food in their hands and talking and laughing about whatever it is that a group of women talk and laugh about.

For the barbecue that afternoon, in the back yard of the building, Tyreese has bought hamburgers and chicken breasts and Karen has put together a table of salads – pasta salad, potato salad, fruit salad, and the others living in the building has brought food, too, and Daryl has brought the cooler of beers and soda for the kids. And Beth.

It's a hot, humid day, but it's beautiful with fat puffs of white clouds in the sky and that sky a brilliant shade of blue that could only be described as the sky. Daryl has spent most of the day with Tyreese at the grill because unlike Rick and Shane's stubborn asses, Tyreese knows that Daryl knows what he's doing when it comes to meat and preparing it for eating. Daryl tried taking the man hunting with him once, but the man walks around like a damn lumberjack and scared all of the game away.

Eliza and Louis are running around, chasing one another with water guns, their screeches and laughter echoing in the afternoon, blending in with the music playing from the stereo that Simon has set up on the table and Simon and Joe are standing together, talking about work and what they think about the factory so far.

Everyone seems to be having a good time and Daryl hadn't really cared when Karen first had mentioned the barbecue idea to him, but looking at it now, he admits that it had been a smart thing to do. They have other buildings and houses with tenants, but this had been their first major renovation project and now, with all of the apartments rented out, it is a success and a cause for a celebration.

"You gonna go talk to her?" Tyreese asks as he flips the row of burger patties over.

Daryl's eyes snap back to him for where they had been settled on Beth and the man just grins, glancing at Daryl before back down to the meat.

"Don't know what you're talkin' about," Daryl mutters before taking a sip of beer.

Tyreese smiles a bit wider. "Sure," he says though they both know that he knows _exactly_ what he's talking about. "Nothing wrong with going to talk to her," he then says.

Daryl smirks a little bit at that. He's been thinking about Beth a lot; not like he really has anything on his mind to think about.

And he has tried to tell himself that that girl has no reason to be so pissed or hurt towards him. Who is he? He's not that baby's daddy and he's not her boyfriend or her husband. So he said something to Rick that she wasn't supposed to hear. Doesn't mean she's allowed to act like he doesn't even exist anymore. He doesn't owe her anything and she needs to stop acting like they're dating and he cheated on her or something like that.

But then he shakes those thoughts from his head because yeah, Beth has every right to be pissed at him. They may not be dating or married, but they had been friends and he had hurt her feelings. He doesn't know how she feels about him, but he knows how he feels about her – not really able to deny that to himself no matter how hard he tries – and even though he hadn't known she has been listening in at the second when he had said those words, Daryl had said them to hurt.

"What's the worst that can happen?" Tyreese asks, now checking on the chicken breasts.

"'sides her dumping that plate of potato salad on my head?" Daryl asks and Tyreese grins.

Daryl then sighs heavily, bringing his bottle back up and his eyes sliding back towards Beth, and the beer bottle freezes to his lips. She's looking at him now, too. And the second their eyes meet, Beth is quick to look away, her head snapping back to Hannah and Miranda. Daryl sighs again. This whole thing is fucking ridiculous and he wishes he could be just a guy – a normal _human_ – who knows how to talk and apologize to another person.

Maybe it's time he goes and talks to Rick and gets some advice. Rick is always so damn willing to give him advice on women. Shane, too, but Daryl tends to always ignore what that man has to say since every piece of advice Shane gives him in regards to the opposite sex seems to end in the back bed of his pickup truck. No. Rick would be the best guy to talk to. He's married and he's happy and not to say that Shane isn't, but Rick has the relationship that Daryl would want more for himself. It's quiet and it's easy and Shane and Lori have fights with each other that are infamous in Scott just because they get bored.

"Do me a favor," Tyreese breaks through his thoughts once more. "Take that one to Hannah. And tell her again for me that the sight of it offends me."

Despite himself, Daryl can't help, but smirk a little at that as he takes the paper plate with the turkey burger on it. He turns away from the grill and takes a deep breath and finally goes to approach the group of women. He tries not to look at just Beth, but where the hell else are his eyes supposed to go when she's around?

As always, she looks so pretty that day. She's wearing jean shorts and a grey tee-shirt that is stretched across her bump – and Daryl swears it's getting bigger every day – and her hair is pulled back in a ponytail. Her cheeks looks a little pink and Daryl doesn't know if it's because it's so hot out here or if it's just the natural color for her cheeks to always be.

"Hi, Daryl," Karen greets him in the middle of laughing about something.

"Hey," Daryl grunts and is able to look away from Beth and look to Hannah. "This is yours and Tyreese says it's offendin' 'im to have to grill it."

Hannah laughs a little and rolls her eyes. "He sounds like Simon," she says, taking the plate from him. She looks back to the other women. "Before we got married, Simon ate a Big Mac every day and now, we eat vegetables that actually crunch and I've probably added at least five years to his life, but he still likes to act like tofu is an abomination."

"It kind of is," Beth teases and the women all laugh at that and even Daryl feels his own lips twitch a little at that.

Feeling like a lump on a log, Daryl gives them a head nod and then turns, heading back towards Tyreese and the grill, but stopping at the table first to get himself more pasta salad. He drains his bottle of the last drop of beer and tosses it into the box for recycling before scooping a plate full of the pasta and then heading towards the cooler for another. Beth is there, the lid open and sifting through the drinks sitting amongst the ice. He hesitates, not sure if he should just wait until she's done and has left, but then he decides to just go for it.

His shadow falls over her and Beth lifts her head to see that it's him. He's not sure what she's going to do, kind of expecting her to just hightail it away like some scared rabbit at the sight of him, but instead, she reaches back into the cooler and pulls out a bottle of beer, holding it out for him to take.

"Here you go," she offers.

"Thanks," Daryl is amazed he's actually able to say and he takes it from her, well aware of their fingers touching as the bottle passes from her hand into his. "If you want somethin' else and it's not in there, I'll run out and get it," he tells her and she smiles a little at that.

"Thank you, but no. The instant I opened the cooler and saw you had bought orange soda, that's the only thing I have a taste for now," she says and to show him, she bends down and takes an orange soda can, letting the lid of the cooler fall shut again.

Daryl stands there, not sure what to do, but knowing that he wants to do something. They're standing there and she's not leaving and Daryl knows he has to do _something_.

"I got an older brother," Daryl hears himself blurt out for some reason. "Merle. He's in prison."

He swiftly kicks himself in the ass. Things are just better when he doesn't talk.

Beth's eyes widen ever so slightly – probably in surprise – and then her face softens as she looks at him. "Do you get to visit him?" She asks.

"When he was in Tennessee, I'd make the drive about twice a month. But then he got transferred to Idaho and I…" he trails off with a slight shake of his head.

He has no idea why he's told her about Merle. He never talks about Merle. It took him years to realize that although he loves his brother and would do nearly anything for him, it's gotten obvious to him that Merle lives his life one way and Daryl's never wanted the same kind of life for himself.

It's like two apples from the same tree that can taste completely different.

"That's such a small world," Beth comments. "I have an older brother, too. Shawn. And he's out in Montana. My family has a farm and we used to have cattle, but not anymore. Now, we're mostly just peaches and horses. Shawn loves cattle though and always wanted to be a cowboy. So he moved out west to get work on a cattle ranch. He's able to come home though, thankfully, so he splits his time between the two, helping daddy with the farm and then helping with cattle drives."

Daryl thinks of something to say. "I read somewhere that in Montana, there's three cattle for every person out there."

That makes Beth smile. "Sounds about right. I visited him out there once. It's beautiful. So much space… it makes you feel very small in the world. I'm sorry about your brother," she then adds.

" _I'm_ sorry, Beth. Real sorry," he is finally able to get out what he has been wanting to say to her all afternoon.

Beth is quick to shake her head. "I just want to forget it, to be honest," she replies and he wonders if she really means that.

"If that's what you want," he says, feeling unsure, but not knowing what else to say because if she wants to forget it and move past it and let him off the hook, why should he argue? "Are you gonna hire that Monet Painting to paint Lil' Dot's nursery?" He then asks, practically blurting the question out because he can't help himself and apparently, when he's around this girl, he has no control over his damn brain or mouth.

Beth pauses for a moment and then nods. "Yes," she says. "I need to stop relying so much on people. Time I make things happen on my own."

Daryl frowns a little at that. It's just one wall. He doesn't mind painting and one wall would take him all of an hour. But he doesn't know how to say any of that, so he doesn't say anything. He wonders if she's going to help him put together the crib.

"Thank you for telling me about your brother," she adds in a quiet voice with a matching soft smile and then taking her orange soda, she turns and heads back to the other women.

Daryl watches her go and although she seems to have forgiven him – at least he thinks that has just happened – he still feels as unhappy as he did when she had been angry at him.

…

"Thank you so much for doing this, Daryl," Lori says as soon as she opens the front door to him standing on the front porch.

"'s no problem," he replies with a shrug, stepping into the house.

He can hear Judith crying from upstairs and he looks around the living room. Not that he's judging because who the hell is he to, but he notices how messy everything is. Baskets of laundry, all unfolded, toys everywhere, magazines, newspapers and mail strewn across the coffee table. With Shane and Lori both working all day and then coming home and taking care of their baby girl, it makes sense that they wouldn't have time for housekeeping, but Daryl likes things neat and orderly in his own place and looking at the Walsh house now, his eye almost starts twitching.

"Carl is spending the night at his friend's house tonight, so it's just you and Judy," Lori says as she hurries into the kitchen, talking to him over her shoulder.

Daryl figures she wants him following her so he does. The kitchen is just as messy – the sink full of dishes and the rack on the counter filled with bottles drying out.

"Judy has just eaten her dinner, but she'll probably want a bottle before bedtime," Lori tells him and opens the refrigerator so he can see that there are some bottles filled with milk on the shelf, ready to go. "Just heat it up on the stove. You know what to do," she then says as if reminding herself of that. "We won't be late, I promise. I don't even want to go, but it's Shane's turn of what we get to do."

Daryl can't help, but smirk. Yeah, going to go watch some football game in the park between men while their wives and girlfriends sit on the sidelines, pretending to be interested, wouldn't be Daryl's ideal Thursday night either.

Hearing someone on the stairs, Daryl turns and sees Shane with Judith in his arms.

"Here," Shane says as soon as he sees him. "Go to Uncle Daryl, baby girl." And with that, Daryl has a baby in his arms with wet cheeks and watery eyes. "Teething," Shane tells him.

"Hey, now," Daryl says in his gentle voice, rubbing Judith's back. "You'll be alright. I'll rub some whiskey on your gums when your mama's out of here."

Shane grins at that. "You know where the booze is. I've been wanting to do that myself, but Lori doesn't approve."

Lori is frowning at both of them. "Why would I approve of you rubbing alcohol on our baby's gums?" She asks them both.

Shane shrugs. "My mom did it to me when I was teething."

"Mine did, too," Daryl replies.

"Well, we're not doing that with Judith." Lori opens the freezer and pulls out a teething ring that has been sitting in there. "You give this to her even though that only seems to work for so long."

Seeing it now, Judith holds her hands out for it and Lori smiles, handing it to her daughter.

"You have our cell numbers in case you need anything?" She asks Daryl.

"Yeah, Lori," Shane begins pushing him towards the door. "He's done this before once or a few hundred times. We're going to be late and I can't miss the coin toss."

"Oh, no. A coin toss is much more important than our daughter," Lori rolls her eyes at him.

"We'll be fine," Daryl tells her, wanting to stop a fight between the two before it can start.

"I know," Lori gives him a smile and then leans in and kisses Judith's cheek. "You be an amazing girl for Uncle Daryl, alright, baby?"

Judith is gnawing on her ice cold teething ring and doesn't seem to make any promises.

"I was thinking you can give Beth a call," Lori says as Shane begins ushering her towards the door and Daryl seems to freeze just at the mere suggestion. "She might want the practice of taking care of a baby. Before Carl, I would have _loved_ to have some practice."

"She still pissed at you?" Shane asks.

Now, Daryl really feels his head spinning.

"Rick told us what you said what she overheard," Shane then explains and Daryl frowns.

Damn, Rick. He gossips like some damn junior high girl or something. Shane just grins though upon seeing Daryl's reaction to that. Lori pushes Shane in the shoulder.

"We agreed we weren't going to say anything to him about it," Lori reminds him.

"I never agreed to that," Shane looks to her and then back to Daryl. "One of these days, I'm going to teach you how to talk to women, man."

Daryl sighs heavily. "Can't wait. You're gonna be late."

That snaps Shane's attention away from him and after both Lori and Shane kiss Judith goodbye, they leave the house and Daryl gratefully closes the door behind him. And once it's just him and Judith alone in the house, he exhales a deep breath.

He looks down at Judith and Judith looks up at him, still gnawing on her teething ring.

"I think I need some whiskey, too," Daryl mumbles to the baby and then carries her back into the kitchen.

…

He knows Shane and Lori won't care. He knows they trust him and they know he won't let anything happen to Judith.

So after straightening up the house for them – unloading the dishes that are in the dishwasher and putting those away before loading the dishes from the sink into the dishwasher for a cycle and then putting away Judith's toys and folding the laundry – Daryl gets the baby's things together and heads out.

He doesn't take his truck because he doesn't have a car seat for her so instead, he loads her up in the stroller and begins pushing her towards downtown. It's not a surprise to him that Shane and Lori don't really have any food in their house. They don't even have time to clean, let alone have time to grocery shop – so Daryl decides to go to Magnolia's for dinner.

It's a little bit after the dinner rush so Magnolia's isn't as crowded as it usually is just an hour before and after just waiting in line with two people ahead of him, Daryl steps up to the counter to order.

"Hi, Daryl," Amy smiles at him and then leans further over the counter to look at Judith sitting in her stroller. "And hi there, pretty girl. Is your Uncle Daryl babysitting you tonight or has he kidnapped you?"

Judith gives her a toothy grin.

"If I was gonna kidnap a kid, it wouldn't be one with teeth pokin' through her gums, makin' everyone miserable," Daryl grunts.

Amy laughs at that, lifting her head to look back to Daryl. She's smiling at him, but Daryl remembers what Beth had told him. Amy's smiles don't mean anything. She smiles at everyone like that and for the first time when around her, Daryl feels himself relaxed as if she's just anyone else.

"What can I get you two tonight?" Amy asks.

"I'll just get my usual tonight and she's got her milk so that'll be it for us," Daryl says as he reaches for his wallet and Amy rings up his order.

Judith seems to be finished with her teething ring because she suddenly yells a string of baby babble at it as if it has just said something terrible to her and she throws it down to the ground in a fit.

"What the hell you doin', girl?" Daryl asks the baby as he bends down to pick it up.

There's a soft laugh suddenly from behind him and it makes everything inside of him freeze. Slowly, he turns as if he doesn't want to scare her off and when he turns fully around, he sees Beth standing behind him, waiting for her turn to order. She's wearing a dress and it's almost seven. He finds himself hoping she hasn't just left work for the night.

"Hey," he remembers himself and is able to grunt.

Beth lifts her eyes from Judith to look at him. "Hi," she greets him and he's a little relieved to see that she doesn't stop smiling just because she's looking at him now. "Babysitting?"

"Kidnappin'," he says and she laughs softly again at that.

"Here you go, Daryl," Amy says and he turns to her to get his number and change. "It'll be up in a few."

"Thanks." Daryl says and pushes the stroller to the side so he can put the leftover money back into his wallet and give Beth her turn to order.

When she does, he's not surprised when she orders her Caesar Salad and a piece of chocolate cake. He finds himself nervous, chewing on his thumbnail, trying to figure out what to say to her. When they see each other in the hall when they're either leaving or getting back home at the same time, she smiles now and says hello, but any more talking than that, or inviting him over for soup and a movie, or asking him to help her run errands – none of that happens anymore.

He misses it. He can't believe that he would miss something like that, but he does. And he doesn't know what to do to get them back to doing those things together. He doesn't even know how any of it between them had started in the first place so he has no idea what to do to get those things back.

He clears his throat. "Would you wanna eat dinner with me and Judith?" He finally asks.

He's surprised he was able to ask and Beth looks surprised as well. And he can see her looking at him as she thinks it through; not able to hide anything on her face. He feels something sink in his chest when she shakes her head.

"Thank you for the invitation, but I was just going to get mine to go. It's been a long day and I just want to go home and eat on my couch," she tells him and he knows that it makes sense – she's pregnant after all – and she doesn't owe him anything, but he can't help, but feel disappointed at her answer.

"'s fine," he nods and hopes that she's able to tell that he means that. For the most part.

"Daryl! Order up!" One of the guys working behind the counter calls out to him.

Daryl keeps looking at Beth. "You take it easy, a'right?" He says to her and Beth visibly swallows and nods. She opens her mouth and he thinks she is going to say something to him, but then her lips close and she nods again.

And Daryl gives her a nod before turning away and pushing the stroller, he goes to collect his food before going to go sit down at a table. He makes sure he concentrates on eating and he doesn't pay attention to the bell that rings above the door, signaling that Beth has left.

…

* * *

 **Thank you very much for reading and please take a moment to review!**


	16. Chapter 15

**Thank you, as always, an infinite amount of times for all of the support and love you have been giving this story. You guys always manage to blow me away. I plan on it continuing past Beth's baby being born. And after this chapter, I already can't wait to get started on Daryl's POV next.**

* * *

…

 **Fifteen.**

 _"It sounds like you're confusing Daryl for the guy who hurt you."_

Maggie's voice echoes in her mind from their conversation on Skype earlier that evening as Beth moved around the kitchen, making dinner. She has mentioned Daryl before to her family – saying he was her building manager, but that he had also become her friend and whenever she had spent the day with him, running errands, she told her family about it.

They all know Daryl's name by this point.

Her parents had been out during her call and Maggie had been home and the sisters had been able to talk openly with one another. Maggie knows that Beth will still not say where she is and she still will not say who the father of her baby girl is and she also knows that her usual big-sister bullying doesn't seem to be changing Beth's mind. So instead, Maggie talks about how things are going for her at work and on the farm and with Glenn. Beth admits that she's surprised that her sister has been dating the same man for almost three months now. That's definitely a record for Maggie.

And in return, Beth tells her about her own job – her family knows she works for the county and the Sheriff, but they don't know _exactly_ what she is doing – and she talks about the baby and she finds herself telling Maggie everything about Daryl, thinking that she'll have an instant ally since Maggie has always been so protective of her, but that' s not what happened. Instead, Maggie says that to her.

Once the call ends, Beth stands there, pulling the pack of shredded cheese from the refrigerator and watching the timer on the oven count down. Is that what she's doing? She was hurt by Daryl's words, yes, but is she distancing herself from him because of all of the things Aiden had done to her? Is she punishing Daryl for Aiden?

Beth frowns slightly to herself at the thought. She can't possibly be doing that… is she?

The oven timer beeps and Beth slips on her oven mitts, opening the door and pulling out the casserole dish. She sets it down on the stove burner and then dumps cheese all over the casserole before slipping the dish back into the oven to keep warm and for the cheese to melt. She looks to the clock as she pulls off her mitts and sees that it's just a little past six.

Her hand goes to rest on Little Dot, though she feels like she should just call her Dot from now on because Beth certainly doesn't feel little. Her baby is growing every day and every appointment with Dr. Douglas lets Beth know that the baby is perfectly healthy and as her daughter grows, Beth grows right along with her. She fells massive and she still has three more months until Dot is out of her and in this world and in her arms.

Beth's arms already ache for her.

She knows her family wants to know where she is. _Of course_ they want to know, but Beth still has kept her lips sealed on her location. She knows her family. Once they know where she is, they will come here and do everything in their power to get her back home with them. But that is the last thing Beth wants.

Does she wish she was closer to her family? Of course, and yet, she already can't imagine raising her baby anywhere else except for in Scott.

Scott has been so good to her – and to her baby – and also, it helps that Scott is clear across the state and she's nowhere near Aiden because if Aiden ever sees her again with a baby, he will know within a second that the baby is his and maybe, her nightmares will come true.

Her eyes float over to the locks on her door; the locks Daryl installed for her once she told him about her nightmare and how she was so scared that Aiden would try to take her baby. He hadn't even hesitated. He had installed those locks for her as soon as he could. He took her shopping at Belk when she needed maternity clothes. He took her to Costco. He took her to Babies R' Us. He helped her get a job, for goodness sakes. He has said he's sorry – more than once – and he's been sincere.

What on earth more does he have to do for her?

Daryl is not Aiden and Aiden can only _wish_ that he is like Daryl.

That's it. With a determined set in her jaw, Beth leaves her apartment and heads right across the hall and raising her fist, she knocks on Daryl's door. Her stomach is in a knot as she waits and she fidgets with her fingers and after an eternity – barely a minute – she hears the lock turn and then the door is pulled open and Daryl stands there.

He's visibly surprised to see her. "Is everythin' alright?" He asks, taking a step towards her.

"I can bake. I have no problem baking. But I'm kind of awful at cooking, but I want to learn for the baby and so I've bought a cookbook and I'm attempting to make things from it and my question to you is do you want to be a taste tester?" She gets out all in one breath.

Daryl looks at her for a moment and she feels nervous and anxious and Dot is rolling around inside of her, which isn't helping keep her stomach calm.

"You mind if I bring Lemon with me?" He finally speaks and Beth breathes again. "I've been gone all day and don't like 'im bein' alone so much."

Beth smiles at that. "Of course Lemon can come."

She waits for him as he goes back into his apartment and returns a moment later with the yellow kitten in his arms. As always, Beth smiles when she sees Lemon and scratches him behind one of his ears. Daryl follows her back across the hall and she gives him a smile as she steps aside so he can enter and she closes the door behind him.

"Smells good," Daryl comments, setting Lemon down on his feet and the kitten heads right for Beth in the kitchen.

Beth laughs a little at that, going back to the oven and putting the oven mitts on once again. "You do _not_ have to say that," she tells him. "My mom always made dinner every night and we only got carry-out very rarely and that was usually on Fridays and was pizza. I want to be able to make dinners for my baby."

She pulls the casserole dish once more from the oven and sets it on top of the stove and smiles at the cheddar cheese now completely melted and bubbling. It does smell kind of good. She pulls a serving spoon from the drawer and then gets two plates. She scoops a large helping onto one and then turns, holding it out for Daryl as he stands on the other side of the breakfast bar.

"Is tuna okay?" She asks. "I figure starting with the casseroles would be the easiest."

"Tuna's great," Daryl says as he takes the plate and Beth smiles at that. She hands him a fork and then scoops out her own helping onto the other plate. "It really does smell good," he then says again and Beth feels her cheeks grow pink at that.

"Thank you for agreeing to try it. Would you like something to drink? I have milk and water and…" she trails off, realizing that those are the only two things she can offer him.

"Milk would be great," he says with a little smile and Beth smiles, too, getting two glasses down from the cabinet for two glasses of milk.

"Do you want to watch a movie?" She asks him and without waiting for his answer, she goes to the couch in the living room and sets her plate and glass on the coffee table and then goes to the bookcase where she has her movies lined up on a shelf near the bottom.

"Can you get it?" He asks as she gets down on her knees.

"Yes, but I'll probably need your help getting up again," she laughs a little. "Are you in a particular mood tonight? I'm leaning towards _Honey, I Shrunk the Kids._ " She looks back to Daryl and sees that he's smiling a little.

"Haven't seen that one in years," he replies.

"Well, that's what we're watching."

She takes the movie from its place and within a second, Daryl is at her side, taking her hand in his and then cupping her elbow with his other and together, they get her back to her feet. Beth looks up at him and he is standing there, looking down at her and her fingers itch to brush the hair back from his face. What would he do if she did that right now? Why shouldn't she? He's not Aiden. He's not Aiden. Stop treating him and _this_ like he is.

She feels Daryl go completely still as she lifts her fingers and does just that. She brushes the hair back from his face that is hanging in his eyes and Daryl stares down at her without saying a word. She feels her throat grow dry as she looks into his eyes as he seems to be able to look into her and see absolutely everything there is to her.

It's slight unnerving and yet, Beth can't get herself to look away from him.

Her hand slowly falls down from his face. "I'm having a girl," she then hears herself say.

When Daryl smiles, she smiles, too.

…

"Hey, Beth," Pete, one of the guards from inside the jail, approaches the desk.

"Hi, Pete," she smiles back at him. "What can I do for you?"

He looks hesitant and embarrassed and Beth's curiosity is instantly peeked.

"Clarence Meeks put you on his visitor's list," he tells her and Beth's eyes naturally widen in surprise at that. "He's been asking me every day if I can talk to you to see if you'll visit him."

Beth doesn't even hesitate. "Of course I'll visit him," she answers readily. "Do I really need to officially visit him though in the visiting room? Can't I just go in and see him?"

Pete hesitates. "The warden and Sheriff Grimes want it done this way. With you so pregnant… none of us would be so comfortable with you coming into the jail."

"Well, technically I am in the jail," she gives him a little smile. "I can't leave the desk during regular visiting hours though. It's always so insane-"

"We can make an exception this time," Pete assures her. "You can come after visiting hours are done."

"Perfect," Beth beams at that. "Tell Clarence I'll see him later."

Once Pete leaves, heading back through the doors that lead back into the jail, Beth finds herself still smiling. She's pleased and surprised that Clarence wants to see her. Very surprised. Maybe he's read the book. She personally doesn't know anything about Clarence Thomas except that he's a Supreme Court judge. Maybe Clarence can tell her about him.

He's been in the jail now for three months, his trial date being delayed a few times now for one reason or another. She had asked more than one guard about him more than once. Apparently, his withdraw from the heroin had been a nasty one, but he's clean now and he's reading and being a good inmate for the most part. Beth's fingers are crossed that his case doesn't get transferred to adult court where the possibility of adult prison is a reality.

The front doors of the intake area open and Beth looks, expecting it to be either an officer bringing in a youth for intake or a person showing up for visiting day. But instead, it's Michonne and little Andre is holding her hand as they walk in.

"Hi!" Beth smiles widely when she sees them both. "What are you doing here?"

Michonne smiles in return, approaching the desk. "I like to bring this one in here sometimes. Show him where he'll go if he's a bad boy and doesn't listen to me. I really like taking him to the cafeteria and showing him the food," she says and Beth laughs a little at that. "But today, I'm here to see you."

"Me?" For the second time in just a few minutes, Beth is surprised and caught off guard.

"Fourth of July. What are you plans?" Michonne asks, letting go of Andre's hand and the boy immediately hurrying around the desk to come on Beth's side.

She smiles and pushes her chair away from the desk so he can climb up onto it. She then looks back to Michonne and shakes her head.

"I haven't thought about it," Beth answers. "Probably trying to do everything to stay cool. I swear, every day, I'm more uncomfortable than I was the day before."

Michonne laughs at that. "I remember that. And not fondly either. Andre, stop," she then says and Beth sees that the boy is reaching out, trying to take a highlighter from the cup next to the computer. "We're having a barbecue, of course, and I promise, you can stay inside of the air-conditioned house and sit on the couch the whole time," she tells Beth.

"Well, how can I possibly refuse that?" Beth laughs. "Thank you. I'd love to come. Do you need me to bring anything?"

"Just yourself and the baby. Besides feeling constantly uncomfortable and awkward, how are you doing otherwise?"

"Good," Beth nods honestly. "And Dr. Douglas tells me that me and Little Dot are both looking good and healthy. I just can't wait for her to get here and I still have a few months."

"They'll fly by, I promise," Michonne says. "When she comes, you'll be freaking out because you feel like there are a million things you've forgotten to do and you're not ready for her."

Beth smiles and her hands come to a rest on her bump, feeling her daughter move within. She feels like how she imagines a fish would feel, just constantly swimming around in their bowl all day even though Dot's a little bigger than a fish now.

It's still amazing to Beth – sometimes when she thinks about it – that in just three more months, she is going to have a baby.

A daughter who she already loves more than anything and who will be someone in her life who will love her in return.

…

The visiting area is empty except for Clarence and a guard standing guard at the door when Beth enters. Clarence is wearing the issued gray jail pants and a white tee-shirt and he stands when Beth comes into the room.

"Heard you were having a baby," he says.

"Yes," Beth smiles. He's taller than her and he looks different than when he first came in. He looks tired, but his eyes are no longer glassy. "A girl," she then adds as she lowers herself into one of the chairs and Clarence sits down in the chair across from her. "You look good."

Clarence snorts a little. "I look like shit."

"You look better than the last time I saw you," she offers. "How are you doing in here?"

Clarence shrugs. "I have a bed here and three meals which is more than I had out there sometimes," he answers and Beth feels her heart twist a little.

"What did you think of the book?" She asks, switching the subject.

"It was good," he says, staring at the table as if he's studying it; as if he's too nervous to look into her eyes. "It's… good to read stuff like that. It's too late for me though."

Beth frowns. "No, it's not."

He pauses and then smirks a little and lifts his eyes to look at her. "I dropped out of high school last year. This isn't my first time in here and it won't be my last."

"That is _not_ the attitude to have, Clarence," Beth tells him fiercely. "It's only too late for you if you're dead. Now. Are you dead?"

Clarence is quiet, looking at her, and she can imagine how she must look like to him. A little white heavily-pregnant woman and him – a tall, black kid who has seen more in his life than Beth could even imagine. She has no right to lecture him and yet, she can't help herself. He's made mistakes, yes, and he has a record, but neither of those should define him. She wonders if her determination to save him – to save any of these kids – comes from her own baby and of course, it does, she knows. She'll do anything to give her baby a good life so her daughter will never know what it's liked to be locked up in a place like this; just like someone should have done for Clarence.

"No, ma'm," he finally answers and it almost looks like he wants to smile at this little thing, lecturing him. "I'm not dead."

"Then, we'll get you some GED books and take it from there."

…

"What the hell you doin'?" Daryl is sitting on the front steps of the building, smoking a cigarette, which he instantly grounds out on the cement, when he sees her coming, and he stands up, hurrying to take the two bags from her hands.

"I didn't know you smoked," Beth says, shaking her hands out once the bags are gone.

Daryl frowns as he feels the weight of the bags and peeks down, seeing that they're practically bursting with books. "And I didn't think it was good for pregnant women to be cartin' heavy stuff around."

"I'm already carting something heavy around," Beth smiles up at him. "I didn't know you smoked," she then said again.

"Don't like smokin' around pregnant women," Daryl says with a slight frown as if there's possibly another explanation for him to give and why didn't she know that already? He clears his throat and Beth waits, it obvious that he wants to say something to her. "Lil' Dot's nursery… I've been thinkin'. I know you already hired that company to paint, but I was just wonderin' if you needed help to put the crib together."

He looks nervous and unsure and Beth wants to reach out and touch his face again, but unlike the night a couple of nights ago in her apartment, she doesn't this time. She's glad things are getting back to normal between them, but at the same time, she meant what she said. She needs to stop relying on others so much. She's going to be a single mom. She already is. And she needs to do this on her own. She and Daryl are friends – or returning to be friends – but she wants to be able to stand on her own two feet. She got so comfortable so fast, always asking him to help her, and even though she knows he is more than willing to help her, Beth wants to see if she can do this on her own without always asking him.

"That's so sweet of you to ask, Daryl, but I'm going to attempt it on my own," Beth tells him. "It's important that I do it on my own."

"Why?" He asks, his brow furrowed.

"It just is," she shrugs. "I have to show myself that I can do these things."

Daryl shakes his head as if he doesn't understand. "Nothin' wrong with askin' people for help," he tells her.

"I know that and you have been the _biggest_ help," she assures him and before she can stop herself, her hand reaches out and touches his hand. "This is just important to me."

They walk into the building together and Beth takes the key from her neck, unlocking her front door. Daryl follows her in and sets the bags of books down onto her kitchen table.

"And I shouldn't get too dependent on you," Beth continues. "Who knows what will happen," she then shrugs.

Daryl's eyes narrow slightly as he looks at her. "What are you talkin' about?"

Beth isn't sure why, but she feels nervous all of a sudden. "Maybe I won't always live across the hall from you and be able to come to you whenever I need something. Or maybe… maybe you'll get married to someone. Or maybe even I'll get married to someone and one of us will move out of here into a house somewhere…" she trails off and Daryl is still staring at her and he's not saying anything and she feels Dot kick her.

She coughs then and tucks a strand of hair behind her ear.

"I'm going to fixing something in the crockpot tomorrow night. Another recipe. If you want to come over for dinner," she offers and does her best to give him a smile, but he's still doing nothing but staring at her and she has no idea what he's thinking.

"Yeah," Daryl finally says and clears his throat. "Sounds good."

He begins walking past her to the door, but before he leaves, he turns around and looks back to her. "'m not lookin' to move or to get married," he then says and it is almost as if he has to needs her to know that.

"Never?" Beth hears herself ask him for some reason.

He shrugs. "Maybe if the right girl came along… can never imagine that happenin' for myself though."

"Maybe the right girl just hasn't come along yet," Beth offers and Dot kicks her again. She wonders if her daughter is hungry or is trying to tell her something else.

Daryl stares at her so intently; just as he had when she felt like he was looking _into_ her. She doesn't understand it because no man – not even Aiden – had ever looked at her like that and she doesn't know what it means. She doesn't even know how to feel about it.

"Don't know. Maybe she has," Daryl shrugs again and then opens her door. "See you tomorrow for dinner. Stop liftin' heavy stuff."

And with that, he leaves, the door closing behind him and when it's just Beth again in the apartment, she stands there for a moment, having no idea what just happened, before going to the couch. She feels like she needs to sit down.

…

* * *

 **Thank you very much for reading and please take a moment to review!  
**


	17. Chapter 16

**I'm sorry for the wait. I found this chapter taking me forever because I have been missing Beth so much lately, I honestly have just started crying and Daryl and Beth just make me so sad. Thank you so much for loving this story and being so excited for it. I'm excited to write the things out I have planned.**

…

* * *

 **Sixteen.**

Rick pushes a plate with a pulled pork sandwich and a helping of pasta salad into Daryl's hands. "Take that to Beth," he tells him.

Daryl nods, chewing on the potato chip he has just popped into his mouth, and he heads through the back sliding door, stepping into the kitchen and hearing laughter floating in from the living room. He knows that's where Beth is because that's where she's been for the past two hours since arriving at Rick and Michonne's for their usual Fourth of July cookout. Daryl barely got to say hello to her before Michonne was gently pushing Beth towards the couch in the living room and since then, Michonne and Lori have been with her the whole time, laughing and talking about things Daryl is pretty sure he doesn't want to know about.

He takes a step into the living room and looks at Beth sitting on the couch, wearing a blue dress with white stars on it. She is laughing as Andre sits next to her, his hand on her stomach that seems to be growing every time Daryl sees her. It almost looks funny though he's smart enough to _never_ say anything like that to her. She's such a little thing and now it looks like someone has taped a beach ball to the front of her because she's remained little, but her stomach just keeps on growing.

"Does it hurt?" Andre asked, looking at her stomach with wide eyes and then looking up to Beth with the same expression.

"Sometimes," Beth replies. "It depends on which way she's turned."

"Ugh. Carl _loved_ kicking me in the bladder. I swear, he stayed in that position for the entire time," Lori says, she sitting next to her on the couch, Judith in her lap. "And this one, she favored my ribs."

"This little man did, too," Michonne smiles from the chair across from them.

"She loves the bladder _and_ the ribs. If it's not one, it's the other," Beth says with a sigh, but then smiles when Andre giggles as Lil' Dot gives his hand another kick. "I just feel uncomfortable all of the time," she then confesses to the two women, none of them noticing yet Daryl standing in the doorway to the room.

"She'll be here before you know it," Lori smiles at her, squeezing her hand.

"And then, you'll feel tired. All of the time," Michonne teases and they all laugh.

Daryl clears his throat then and three heads whip over to see him standing there. He looks at Beth and holds up the plate. "Brought you food," he informs her.

"My hero," Beth's smile is bright and warm and Daryl feels the back of his neck flush.

He's glad they're talking again and back on their friendship track, but now that everything's pretty much back to normal between them, there's no hiding or denying his crush on her now. It's there and it's pretty damn obvious that it's not going anywhere. He looks forward to seeing her every day and if, by some chance that he doesn't, he feels it right in his chest; like he misses her and like he's never missed anything more than not seeing her for a day.

It seems like the more Daryl tells himself to knock it off, the more he realizes that he likes his neighbor. Really likes her. And he knows it's stupid. She's pregnant with a kid who's not his and even though they're friends, he can't imagine Beth having feelings for a guy for a long time; not after everything the baby's real dad put her through. It seems like he's just setting himself up for disappointment and he's had that for his entire life and he shouldn't be looking to feel that again. But here he is.

"Does this mean that the pork is ready?" Michonne asks, standing up. "About time. Come on, Andre," she says and taking the little boy's hand off of Beth's bump, she leaves the room.

"Whew!" Lori frowns, also standing up. "This one needs her diaper changed!"

And with that, she leaves the room as well and Daryl finds himself alone in the living room with Beth. He reminds himself to talk to both Michonne and Lori about subtlety because they sure as shit don't have any.

Beth is still smiling at him and he passes the plate from his hands to hers. "Thank you," she says and she sounds as if she's never been thankful for anything more than this right now.

"You need somethin' to drink?" He asks, looking down at her. "And I forgot a fork. Hold on."

"Daryl, it's okay. You're not my servant," she says with a shake of her head and then he watches as she begins to get up – or at least _tries_ to get up from the couch.

He reaches out before he can tell himself to not touch her and of course, he touches her; his hand gentle on her shoulder, keeping her sitting on the couch. "I'm gonna get you a fork. You need a napkin, too. What do you want to drink?" He asks her.

Beth tilts her head upwards so she could look at him and he realizes that he's still bent a little over, close to her, making sure she says sitting where she is. She stares into his eyes and Daryl stares into hers and he has absolutely no idea what is happening, but right then, he knows that he'd be pretty happy if he never looked at anything else besides her eyes.

He's suddenly glad that Michonne and Lori high-tailed it out of there so no one can witness this. He doesn't even know what _this_ is, but he's glad no one is around to witness it. The way Beth is looking at him, he's pretty sure it's the way he's looking at her right now; like maybe if he kisses her right now, she won't absolutely hate it and push him away from her.

But he can't kiss her. Not here at least. They're in the Grimes' living room with a patio crowded with people who can walk in here at any second and see him kissing her. The first time he kisses Beth – if he ever kisses her – it is going to be in complete privacy when they will be the only two to know that it happened.

Damn, she is pretty. _Really_ pretty. He's been close to her like this a couple of other times now and he's never denied the fact that Beth Greene is pretty, but still… it kind of takes him aback every time when he looks at her face. Pretty girls like her don't exist outside of magazines and pretty girls like her definitely don't live across the hall from him in some in the middle of nowhere town.

And pretty girls like her don't look at guys like him like she wants him to kiss her.

He hears Carl then, coming into the kitchen on the other side of the wall, the patio door slamming shut behind him and Michonne immediately scolds him. It causes Daryl to tear his head back and he stands up straight again and Beth is looking a little flushed, too.

"You want anythin' special to drink?" He asks her.

She gives him a small smile and shakes her head and Daryl leaves to go into the kitchen. Michonne is at the counter, Andre sitting up on the counter next to her, and she is cutting a pulled pork sandwich up into smaller bites for him. She looks at Daryl from the corner of her eye when he goes to open the door of the refrigerator and he can see her smiling.

He doesn't ask her about it though. He actually does his best to ignore it. He's not an idiot and he knows why she's smiling. It's not anyone's business though except his and Beth's and everyone can just keep on smiling and guessing as to what is going on between them. Then again, it might be nice to know what the hell is going on, Daryl decides. He wonders what Beth actually wants; if she wants anything at all.

He wonders what _he_ actually wants.

He grabs a can of cherry 7-Up and then a plastic fork and a few napkins before heading back into the living room. Beth has already started eating her sandwich and when he comes back into the room, she covers her mouth with her hand as if he's never seen her chew before, and she smiles at him happily with her eyes. He finds himself sitting down next to her on the couch and he carefully puts the fork on her plate and sets the soda down on the coffee table in front of them; making sure it's on a coaster so Rick doesn't yell at him. Rick – not Michonne – cares a lot about coasters.

Once Beth finishes chewing and smiling, she lowers her hand. "Thank you," she says to him.

Daryl gives his head a single head nod and finds himself looking at her again. What is it about her today that he can't stop looking at her? She looks today as she does every other day. Doesn't she? So why does the back of his neck feel on fire just with her smiling at him?

"You need to get yourself one of the sandwiches before they're all gone," she tells him. "I think I might have a second. And third," she says with a slight laugh. "Dot seems to like them. She hasn't stopped rolling around in there since I took the first bite."

Daryl's eyes couldn't help, but drop down to her bump though it was much larger than a bump now. And Beth smiles faintly as she sees him looking.

Without a word, she moves her plate to one hand and with her other, she takes hold of one of Daryl's hands. He stiffens slightly, but doesn't pull it back as she brings it to her bump. She presses it down gently and Daryl sits there for a moment, nothing really happening, before he feels it. The slightest nudge against his palm. He exhales a breath as if he had been holding it and he stares at his hand for a moment as if he can hardly believe that that had just happened and he then looks at Beth, who is smiling brightly at him. He gives her his own little smile before looking back down to his hand and Beth's baby gives his palm another kick.

It's probably one of the most amazing things he has ever felt. There is a baby, alive, inside of Beth right now and in just a couple more months, that baby is going to be out here.

Beth laughs out a little laugh now as if she can read his mind. "I think I'm still not used to it. I mean, I've seen her pictures, but feeling her, all of the time, she's really in there."

"'s amazin'," he says quietly, lifting his eyes once more to hers and Beth is still smiling.

Slowly, his hand leaves her bump even though he realizes that he doesn't really want to stop feeling Lil' Dot and feeling that she's alive and safe and healthy in there.

"Have you thought of names yet?" He asks, slowly sitting back into the couch, settling himself in next to her and she smiles a little before taking a bite of pasta salad and he can't help, but watch everything about her. Even the way she eats is interesting to him. Small, sensible bites and her lips are pale pink and he watches the way they clean everything off the fork before the utensil leaves her mouth.

"I have two and I can't decide. Lucy and Holly," she answers. "What do you think?"

Daryl actually does think for a moment and then gives a nod. "Both are good," he says and he does like both of them. Lucy Greene or Holly Greene sounds good to him – though he doesn't know why his opinion on the baby's name would matter either way to Beth. "Holly Greene's kind of funny," he then comments.

Beth giggles a little and nods in agreement. "My daddy said the same thing. And my sister says Holly Greene is getting dangerously close to porn star name territory."

"I don't know 'bout that," he smirks a little. "But I see her point."

Beth giggles again. She has finished her sandwich and most of her pasta salad and she begins to lean forward for her soda can, but Daryl grabs it before she can and hands it to her. She gives him a small smile and pops the tab before taking a sip.

"Thank you," she says after a moment. "Thank you for helping me so much."

"Know you don't want help, but there's nothin' wrong with gettin' it," Daryl answers.

"That's easy for you to say," Beth says with a little smile. "I bet you've never needed help from anyone a day in your life."

"You helped me get Lemon," he reminds her. "And 'fore that…" he shrugs. "Never had no one in my life who was willin' to help me whether I needed it or not."

Beth thinks that over for a moment. "Do you need help with anything?" She then asks, almost in a whisper as if she's almost holding her breath in anticipation of what his answer might possibly be.

"You know the theater in town?" Daryl asks. "The Towne?"

She nods slowly, curiosity plain on her face.

Scott only has one theater – a one-screen place that's been around since the 30s. It never shows new releases – the theaters in Baker handle that – since it doesn't have the updated digital equipment, so it shows old movies that plenty of people go and see – both from Scott and even the surrounding towns, liking the idea of seeing those movies on the big screen. Certain movies being shown are damn-near sold out on the weekends.

"They're showing the 1931 _Dracula_ this weekend," he continues and in the back of his mind, he wonders what the hell he's doing, but he doesn't stop himself nor does he shut himself up because he _wants_ to do this. "It'd be a big help if you came to see it with me."

Beth laughs a little at that. "Why would that be a big help for you?" She asks, but he can see her cheeks are turning pinker as the blush spreads across her face.

"'cause it's one of my favorites and I wanna watch it with you," he says and the back of his neck is completely on fire now, but he doesn't look away from her and she is staring at him; staring at him as if maybe, she's never seen him before this moment.

"I would love to see it," she says in an exhale of air and Daryl feels himself breathing, too.

"Great," he says and then gets to his feet. "You want another sandwich?" He asks and before she can answer, he is taking her plate back into his hands. "Figure I'll get myself one, too, 'fore they're all gone. I'll be right back."

"Daryl," Beth says his name though before he can leave the room. She pushes her hands down on the couch cushions, pushing herself up, and Daryl goes back to her, setting the plate down and helping her get to her feet. "Thank you," she smiles at him.

He figures she just has to go to the bathroom, but when he starts to step away from her, Beth is quick to grab one of his hands with both of hers. He stops and looks down at her and she's trying to keep her eyes on him, but they keep dropped down as if she's too embarrassed for some reason to keep looking at him.

Daryl knows he's not good at reading women. He can read animal tracks, weather, even leaves. But when it comes to reading anything remotely related to women, he's lost. Always has been even with Merle trying to teach his baby brother the way of things. Merle had tried to teach Daryl everything he knew about the opposite sex, but Daryl never took the lessons seriously. He saw the women his brother always hooked up with; the sort of women who drank too much and smoked too much and wore too much perfume and too many low-cut shirts to show off their chests that there were too much of.

Daryl didn't want a girl like that so learning how to land one didn't interest him.

But now, he finds himself looking down at Beth Greene's pretty face and he wishes he had listened to at least a little about what Merle was blabbering about because it's obvious to Daryl that right now, Beth wants something. He just has no idea what it could be.

So, he decides to go with his instincts. They've never really led him wrong before. Ever since he was a young kid and learned how to read them and trust them, he doesn't ignore them. His instincts are strong and they've taken care of him as well as they can.

He does what _he_ wants to do and just hopes that it's what Beth wants, too.

Remembering that they are still in Rick and Michonne's living room and there's a 4th of July party going on outside, but not really caring anymore about that, Daryl leans down and presses his lips to hers and the way that Beth's hands relax around his and the fact that she doesn't immediately rip her lips away from his, Daryl thinks that maybe, yet again, his instincts haven't let him down.

…

Daryl tries to think of what Merle would say if his older brother was here and not locked up in Idaho, of all places. They write letters back and forth and Daryl always makes sure that Merle has money on his commissary account, but Daryl hasn't told Merle about Beth, yet.

He kind of already knows what his brother will say.

"You've got yourself crushin' on some lady who's pregnant with some kid who ain't even yours?"

Daryl can hear Merle perfectly in his head and he doesn't doubt that that's exactly what Merle would be saying about this entire situation. And Daryl tries to imagine what he would say to Merle in defense of himself. Yeah, Beth's pregnant, but that' not all she is. She's Beth with a baby in her and she'll be Beth with a baby out of her and did he ever think he'd fall for a pregnant girl? Hell, he never thought he'd fall for _any_ girl, but here he is and the thing about it is, it doesn't feel wrong or weird.

Kissing Beth, it felt right.

He doesn't understand why it would, but he's not going to waste time thinking about it. It's the way things are. Kissing Beth feels right and that's that. He's never been one to question too much around him. If this is how it is, this is how it's going to be.

He doesn't think too much about where this is going to go or what will happen between them once Holly or Lucy is born. Maybe Beth's not thinking too clearly right now because of Lil' Dot and after the baby is born, Beth will be completely repulsed by him.

He's just not going to think about that right now.

Right now, he's going to go across the hall, knock on her door, and take her to see _Dracula_.

He does just that and less than a minute after knocking, the door opens and Beth is standing there, smiling at him as if she's not repulsed by him at all, and he smiles a little back at her. Daryl's going to take it for as long as it lasts.

"You ready?" He asks.

"Yep," Beth beams with excitement. She turns, grabbing her bag from the hook on the wall and putting it over her head so it slings across her chest, and Daryl takes a step back so Beth can step out into the hall and lock her door securely behind them.

As they walk outside towards his truck, he hears a rattling coming from her bag and he looks down at it with a smirk before up to her face.

"You sneakin' somethin' in?" He asks.

"Of course not," Beth laughs. "And I'm offended you would even _think_ that I would."

"Huh-uh. 'm sorry you're offended," he smirks a little. They get to his truck and he unlocks the passenger door, opening it for her, and she smiles at him before climbing up as best as she can without looking completely awkward, Daryl cupping her elbow to help. "You gonna share with me once we get there?" He asks before he shuts the door.

Beth laughs again. "Of course," she says with a nod this time. "You like Junior Mints?"

"Best theater candy there is," Daryl replies and Beth beams even more at that – if possible.

"I knew I liked you for a reason," she says lightly with laughter in her voice and Daryl smirks at that, careful to close the door behind her and he then walks around the front of the truck, climbing up and getting in behind the wheel. "I do, by the way," Beth says as he slips the key in the ignition, turning the engine on. Daryl looks at her and doesn't say anything and she is smiling faintly and blushing lightly. "Like you. I _do_ like you, Daryl."

And Daryl's not sure why he feels so relieved to hear that. He should have already known that she at least likes him a little. Girl might be pregnant, but he knows that Beth isn't the sort to just walk around, kissing guys or letting guys kiss her for no reason.

Daryl matches her faintly smile with one of his own and he dips his head in a nod. "I like you, too," he tells her and the same sense of relief he had felt at her words, he can now see plain as day on her face – as if she hadn't been expecting that or worried that maybe he had been regretting their kiss.

It definitely had been a kiss acting on an impulse, but there's not a single part of him that regrets it. In fact, Daryl loves this movie, but he's already excited for it to be done so he can drive Beth home and hopefully have enough balls to kiss her again.

…

* * *

 **Thank you very much for reading and please take a moment to leave a review!  
**


	18. Chapter 17

Alerts are not working for this site so it means so much to me that so many are making the effort to make sure they don't miss an update and always reading and leaving me comments. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for your support.

* * *

...

 **Seventeen.**

"You warm enough?" Daryl asks her as they stand in line outside the Towne, waiting to buy their tickets, and Beth can't help, but look at him with a soft giggle.

"It's ninety degrees out here," she points out to him and she sees his ears turn red as he gives a little shy smile and shrugs his shoulders.

She reaches her hand out and slips it into his and for half a moment, she wonders if she should do such a thing out in public like this where other people can see, but before she can double-guess herself and overanalyze and pull her hand away, Daryl's fingers close around her hand and keeps holding on. She looks down to the ground and smiles to herself.

It's been such a long time since she's had anything like this. Holding hands with someone who genuinely likes her and in public with other people around to see. Beth is quick to squash those thoughts away though. Aiden doesn't deserve even the most miniscule of places inside her mind. He lied to her in every single way a person could lie to someone and in the end, he had showed that he hadn't cared for her or their baby. _Her_ baby. Her daughter. He doesn't deserve to have her thinking of him.

And Daryl doesn't deserve that either. He is nothing like Aiden and when he's with Beth, he deserves her absolute full attention. To be honest, she doesn't want to really think about anything anyway besides him. This man who has kissed her and is now holding her hand and is taking her to see one of his favorite movies and it may seem like such a little thing, but he's sharing something with her that means something to him and she knows that he doesn't know how much that means to her, but it does.

The line moves forward and Dot moves inside of her as if flipping herself around and Beth places her other hand onto her bump, smiling faintly at the movement.

"She movin'?" Daryl asks.

"Like she ate a can of jumping beans," Beth smiles and Daryl smiles a little, too. "Do you want to feel her?" She then asks.

Daryl hesitates for a moment and then shakes his head. "Nah, that's alright," he answers, which surprises her, because sitting on the Grimes' couch, feeling her for the first time, Beth had seen the look of complete wonderment on Daryl's face as he felt Dot kicking.

But then she thinks that maybe he doesn't want to touch her stomach with others around. Beth understands. Of course she knows how small towns like this are and people in Scott have been so good to her – before and after her pregnancy became obvious – but she's sure there will be enough of a field day with Daryl holding her hand like he is and they don't need to add more fuel to the fire. It's not his baby and Beth's not asking him to be a father and the people in town might be thinking the wrong things if Daryl touches her stomach.

Once they reach the window, Daryl buys them two tickets and Beth looks at the poster for the 1931 movie. She tries to remember if she's ever seen this, but she doesn't think she has. She has tended to stay away from scary movies though she can't imagine this one being that scary. The Universal monsters are supposed to be some of the best though and she is excited that Daryl had asked her to come see this with him.

"Is every movie shown here for just a week?" Beth asks once they step into the air-conditioned lobby.

"Pretty much, 'cept when they show _Sound of Music_ , _Ben-Hur_ , and _Wizard of Oz_. They usually wind up showin' those three for two weeks," Daryl answers and with a gentle hand on her back, he guides her over to the line for the concession counter. "You want anythin'? What about Dot? She got a cravin' for somethin' 'sides Junior Mints?"

Beth smiles at that, but shakes her head. "We're both alright. Thank you."

"'m gonna get some popcorn and 'm gonna need your help to eat it," Daryl tells her.

Beth feels herself blush at that and she gives him a smile and nod. This man, could he possibly be the sweetest man in the world? She doesn't doubt for a minute that he is. The fact that someone as sweet and _handsome_ as Daryl Dixon is spending his time with a woman who's pregnant with a baby who isn't his, it speaks volumes of his character.

Daryl gets a large bucket of popcorn – with butter – and a large cup of Coke. Beth then takes both of their tickets and hands them to the usher before entering the theater. The heavy red velvet curtain is still pulled over the screen and Beth looks for a moment at the available seats. There are more people here on a Thursday night than she would have thought. Thankfully, two seats on the end in the back row are still empty and she goes towards them now. Odds are, she'll be going to the bathroom at least twice during the movie – even though the movie isn't even ninety minutes long.

Without her having to ask, Daryl sits down first and gives her the aisle seat. She eases herself down into the velvet lined seat and gives him a smile.

"Thank you," she says to him.

"For what?" He asks, not seeing that he had done anything.

Beth decides not to call him out on it though she suspects that he knows exactly what she is thanking him for. "For bringing me here tonight," she says instead.

She looks at him in the dim theater lights and Daryl looks at her, too. She feels her heart flip completely over before righting itself once again in her chest and she can't blame her daughter for that. She knows that it's all Daryl that is doing this to her.

Beth can't help, but wonder what he's doing here with her. She can't imagine Daryl not having his options of women in Scott. It's a small town, but he's extremely handsome and there _are_ other single women in this town. Not just her and they aren't largely pregnant. Why would he waste a kiss on her? Why would he want to take her out on what could only be referred to as a date? Unless… because she is pregnant, and pregnant by a married man of all people, does that make her look easy in a man's eyes? A sure thing?

Stop, Beth, she frowns to herself. How terrible is she for thinking that about Daryl. Daryl, who has been nothing, but nice and welcoming to her and who's kiss still makes her shiver when she thinks about it. Her hormones have been wracking havoc on her body and that kiss was so wonderful and torturous all at the same time because it's been so long since someone has kissed her so sweetly and at the same time, it's been _so_ long since someone has kissed her and her body nearly immediately reacted to his lips on hers.

"'member. You promised me some Junior Mints," Daryl tells her and Beth laughs.

She reaches into her bag and pulls out the box and he instantly holds his hand out for a few. After giving him a few, she pops one into her mouth and he moves the bucket of popcorn closer to her and she gives him a smile, taking a few kernels.

The red curtain pulls open, revealing the white movie screen behind it and the lights go down. An ad begins running about turning off cell phones and being quiet and respectful.

"Am I going to get scared?" Beth whispers to him.

Daryl smirks a little and shakes his head. "If you do, I ain't goin' anywhere."

Beth's heart subsequently flips again.

…

He kisses her again. Thank goodness.

After the movie – which she is sure to tell him, more than once, that she absolutely loved – Daryl drives them back to their apartment building.

"Stay," he tells her once he parks and he sees her hand going to the handle on the door.

Beth purses her lips together as she smiles and watches as he walks around the front of the truck, coming to her door and opening it for her. She turns sideways on the seat and he takes both of her hands in his, helping her slide down from the truck. Dot is kicking her like crazy now and Beth laughs a little because although it hurts, her daughter is being so active tonight and Beth's not entirely sure why, but Beth knows that she loves feeling it.

"Can I feel her now?" Daryl asks, his voice soft and a little gruff.

"Of course," Beth smiles and he slowly pulls his hands from hers so he can rest both on the bump. And Beth watches him as a smile creeps across his lips when he feels Dot kicking.

"'m sorry for not feelin' earlier," he says, his eyes still trained on her bump. "I don't like everyone watchin' and knowin' my business."

Beth shakes her head. "It's alright," she says with a smile that hopes he knows she means it. She more than understands that. Small towns and people looking and talking are one of the reasons she left home in the first place. She can't be anything, but understanding about it.

"It ain't 'cause I don't want to feel Dot, 'cause I do," Daryl continues and Beth keeps smiling.

"It's alright, Daryl," she says and her hands come to a rest over his. "Really. There's nothing to apologize for or explain."

Daryl lifts his eyes and looks at her and Beth feels a chill spread across her arms despite it being in the nineties that evening with a thick blanket of humidity. He's looking at her and she has so many thoughts in her mind at once; thoughts that have no business being there. Thoughts of how much she likes him and how much she _loved_ his kiss and she hopes he kisses her again and again and extinguish the flames licking at her skin. Thoughts of how handsome he is and how lucky she feels that she's the one he took out on a date tonight.

Thoughts of how easily it would be for her to fall in love with this man.

And that thought is just absolutely terrifying to her because hasn't she learned her lesson? Daryl likes her and she knows because he told her, point blank, that he does, but she can't possibly expect or even hope for something more than that. Men and love and her just don't go together and even if they all did… why would she ever think that a man could love her and her daughter? Because it's just not about her anymore. If she is going to have a man in her life, he's going to be in Lucy or Holly's life as well and he has to love them both.

Beth can't expect Daryl to stick around because while he likes her now – while she's a big as a beluga whale – he has no ties to her and no obligation to stick around. What's worse? Him walking away now and breaking her heart while she still has time to put it back together or him walking away after the baby's born and they have gone through so much together?

She opens her mouth to say something – maybe not her particular thoughts – but something nonetheless, but no words are able to leave her mouth because with his hands still on her bump, Daryl leans down and he kisses her.

And the thoughts that had been racing in her mind just seconds earlier now disappear.

Beth lifts her hands and rest them on his cheeks and she finds herself opening her mouth as Daryl gently pushes his tongue past her lips. She moans softly and attempts at stepping closer to him, but her bump is getting in the way and she nearly whimpers with frustration.

She feels Daryl's lips curve a little against her mouth and then, he pulls back, his face still so close to hers, Beth can't look anywhere except in his eyes.

"'s alright," he says quietly. "We'll figure it out."

Beth can't think to do anything in that moment except gently grab his face and pull him down to her lips for another kiss.

…

Lori had given Beth the information on the parenting class in Baker and Beth doesn't know why she feels so nervous as she walks into the community center, her laptop clutched to her chest. She knows she's certainly not the only single mother in the world and she can't possibly be the only woman who has ever showed up to these classes without a partner.

After Lori told her about these classes and how great they were and how she should definitely think about attending at least one, for a half a second, Beth considered asking Daryl to come with her. She shook that idea out of her mind just as quickly though. She couldn't possibly ask Daryl to come with her to a _parenting_ class. Dot isn't his responsibility whatsoever and she didn't even let him know that she was coming here tonight because she knows him and he would insist on coming and Beth already knew that she wouldn't be able to protest against it.

She finds the room easily enough and she pokes her head in. There is already one other couple there, sitting at a table in front of her, a baby doll in front of them. There is a woman in the front of the room, shuffling papers on the desk. They all look up when they sense Beth hovering in the doorway.

"Hi!" The woman who Beth assumes is the instructor smiles widely at her. "I'm Bonnie! Welcome!" The woman was friendly and warm and Beth, despite her nerves, finds herself easily smiling in return and shaking the woman's outstretched hand.

"Um, I read that the community center has free Wi-Fi. My sister can't make it with me tonight, but I was wondering if I'm able, can I bring her up on Skype?" Beth asks.

"Of course! We had a military wife do that a few months ago with her husband, who was able to coincide his calls with the class," Bonnie says, her smile constant. "Pick a table and a baby and let me know if you need any help. The Wi-Fi password is BakerCC."

"Thank you," Beth says graciously. "I'm Beth Greene, by the way."

"Welcome, Beth," Bonnie says and then sweeps her arm across the room. "Sit wherever you like and we'll get started right at seven."

Beth chooses the table in the back, giving the couple she passes a small smile and they smile at her in return. The baby is plastic and naked – for the moment – and Beth knows that they are going to practice with diaper changes and getting the baby dressed. She sits down and opens up her laptop, finding the center's Wi-Fi connection and signing on. She then clicks on her Skype and calls Maggie. It rings only once before Maggie picks up and Beth sees that her older sister is eating a bowl of ice cream.

"This is so stupid, Maggie," Beth can't stop herself from saying.

"Shut up and turn me around so I can see the class," Maggie says with a smile.

Beth turns the laptop so Maggie can see the classroom and sets it down next to her. A couple other couples have come into the room and Bonnie greeting them and Beth passes the moment by looking at the plastic baby doll that she is going to be using that evening. She can't help, but run her hand down the doll's arm and then picks the baby up in her arms. Dot rolls around inside of her and Beth smiles faintly.

"Beth!" Maggie says and Beth puts the baby doll down to turn the laptop more towards her.

"Yes?" Beth says in a polite tone with an overly sweet smile and Maggie narrows her eyes at her that makes Beth almost laugh.

She thinks Maggie wanting to come to the parenting class with her is sweet of her older sister and Beth wasn't exactly surprised when Maggie had told her she wanted to come. That is just who Maggie is. Maggie loves her and wants to look out for her and Beth loves her for that. And she isn't going to lie to herself and say that she doesn't miss her sister and the rest of her family and she isn't going to lie to herself and say that she doesn't wish that Maggie was with her right now instead of on a laptop.

"Let me see the baby," Maggie says, taking another spoonful of ice cream from her bowl.

"We still have three more months," Beth smiles.

" _Our_ baby," Maggie clarifies though she really doesn't have to and Beth laughs a little as she holds up the baby doll so Maggie can see. "Excellent choice," she says and Beth laughs again.

"Alright, everyone!" Bonnie says from the front of the classroom and Beth turns the laptop forward once more so Maggie can see her as well. "Who is ready to take care of some babies?" She asked everyone.

"I am!" Maggie exclaimed and everyone else in the class laughed at that and Beth felt her cheeks explode in a blush as everyone turned to look towards them in the back, but even though she feels a little embarrassed, she is so glad that she isn't there alone tonight.

…

Beth isn't going to lie. She loves when Daryl comes over to her apartment for dinner and she serves them her newest attempt onto plates and they sit down at the table together. She tries to make sure she doesn't build the fantasy in her head. She tries to make sure that she knows that it's nothing more than this. A man – her boyfriend? – coming over for dinner and that's all it is. She definitely does _not_ imagine a highchair at the table with them.

"This is prob'ly one of my favorites you've made, to be honest," Daryl says as he stands up to get himself another scoop of hamburger casserole from the pan left on the stove.

"Really?"

"Ain't lied to you yet, girl," Daryl replies and Beth feels her heart flip.

She turns and takes her cook book that she leaves on the counter and she opens it up on the table in front of her. Yellow Post-Its are sticking out from many of the pages, marking her place and she opens it to the page that has the recipe for the hamburger casserole and she makes a star next to it. It will be a couple of years before Lucy or Holly can eat it herself, but Beth will remember that this one is definitely a keeper.

"'m surprised you didn' graduate high school," Daryl suddenly says.

"Excuse me?" Beth turns in her chair to see Daryl coming back to the table, the GED book she is reading from for Clarence in his hand. "Oh," she then smiles. "There's this boy in the jail. Clarence. I'm helping him prepare for his GED. And his court date has been moved around, but it's finally set for next week. His lawyer has asked if I would mind going and speaking on his behalf."

Daryl looks at her as he guided a mouthful of casserole into his mouth and chewed it down before speaking. "You gonna do that?"

"Of course," Beth smiles. "Clarence is a good kid. People would look at him and not think that, but he really is. He just needs good things in his life."

He looks at her and then smirks a little, shaking his head.

"What?" She asks.

He shakes his head again. "You're jus' amazin'. That's all."

He takes another forkful of casserole and is quiet for a moment as he chews on that mouthful and Beth feels her cheeks warm and her heart flip and both are becoming such normal reactions to have while around him. She wonders if she does anything to him.

"So, what if he gets out? You gonna keep helpin' him?" Daryl asks.

"I haven't thought of that too much, to be honest," Beth answers. "I've just been working so hard to get him clean and get him on the right path while still _in_ there. He does need a plan though, doesn't he? The main reason so many people return to jail and prison after getting out is because they don't have a plan that keeps them away from trouble. Clarence needs a plan, too."

Daryl nods as he is chewing on another bite of casserole. "'s true," he says once swallowed.

Beth wonders if he, Tyreese and Karen need any help with their renovation and flipping work, but she can't possibly ask him that. She doesn't even know what she and Daryl are because she wants to consider him her boyfriend, but she doesn't know if he actually is and she has no idea how he looks at her and she can't ask him for such a favor to help her with helping Clarence. All he knows about Clarence is that he's just some kid in jail. To most people, that's all they need to know. That's a _huge_ favor to ask of someone who she doesn't even know what to call him.

Beth realizes that she's staring at him and Daryl stares at her as he eats his third plate. But he doesn't say anything and she doesn't know what to say. She has stopped being nervous around him, but now, she _does_ feel nervous because she is thinking of labels between them and that's the last thing she should be thinking about because in three months, she is going to have a baby and she can't honestly expect Daryl to still be coming over for dinner after that. Labels don't matter. They kiss and they like each other and they spend time together, but that's all it is and Beth is going to convince herself that she's perfectly fine with that.

"So," she is able to speak again and she looks back down to the cookbook, turning the next few pages. "I think tomorrow, I'll try to make us beef stroganoff. How does that sound?"

Daryl gives her a nod and he stands up, taking his empty plate and taking her plate as well, carrying both to the sink to load into the dishwasher. "Sounds real good," he comments and Beth grabs a post-it to mark the beef stroganoff recipe so she can buy everything she needs to make it tomorrow at the grocery store after work.

She stills though when she feels Daryl coming to stand behind her. He leans down and his lips brush along her temple and Beth closes her eyes, losing herself in what has to be the sweetest moment she has ever had in her life.

"Thank you for dinner," Daryl tells her, his voice low in her ear, and she finds her head tilting closer to his lips.

"Anytime," Beth whispers back and she hopes he knows that she means it.

…

* * *

 **Thank you so much for reading and please take a moment to review!**


	19. Chapter 18

**When I first started this story, I found Beth's chapters so hard to write, but now, I find myself so excited to write her POV - especially after this chapter. As always, thank you for reading and for supporting me and my writing.**

* * *

…

 **Eighteen.**

Officer Martinez gets shot in the line of duty – once in the shoulder and once in the arm – and though the suspect had immediately been shot by Martinez's partner, and Martinez is stable and will recover, when one of his officers gets injured in the line of duty, Rick gets very little sleep over the next few days from the investigation that follows.

Michonne calls Daryl when he and Tyreese are on the roof of a two-story apartment building, tearing off old roof tiles and Karen calls up to him, holding up the cell phone.

"None of us can get him out of the office," Michonne informs him once he's back on the ground and has taken the cell phone from Karen to see who it is.

At first, he had thought that maybe it had been Beth and as he climbed down the ladder, Daryl had found himself actually hoping that it _was_ Beth. He just hopes the disappointment in his voice isn't evident to Michonne that it's her instead.

"And what makes you think _I_ can?" Daryl asks with a slight frown.

"Just try? Please?" Michonne asks and Daryl pauses at that. He's known Michonne for a while now and she sounds upset and lost and she doesn't know what else to do.

"Yeah," Daryl agrees. "I'll head to the station at lunch. See if I can get 'im to eat somethin'."

And when he, Tyreese and Karen break for lunch, Daryl does just that.

He stops at Magnolia's and gets a spud and a bottle of lemonade and then drives to the Sheriff's Station. The desk sergeant gives him a nod and no one stops him as he walks through the desks, heading towards Rick's office. The door is open at least and when Daryl knocks, Rick lifts his eyes from the piles of paperwork in front of him. The man's definitely lost place of his razor.

"Hey," Daryl greets him when Rick doesn't tell him to leave and he walks up to the desk, setting the bag down in front of him, right on top of the papers, and he then sits down. "Thought you might be hungry," he says as casually as anything.

"Thanks," Rick says, but then takes the bag and sets it aside so he can get back to his papers.

Daryl's quiet, watching him for a moment and thinking. He's not sure what Michonne and others have tried already – and what obviously hasn't worked – but Daryl's not going to just stand up and leave. Now that he's here and sees how shitty Rick is looking, Daryl feels a little bit of a burning determination on the back of his neck.

"Those kids are still skateboardin' in the empty pool at the Miller Street property," Daryl begins. "With your permission, I'd like to find 'em and shoot 'em with my crossbow."

"That's fine," Rick says, not living his eyes.

"String 'em up in the middle of town, too?"

"Whatever works for you," Rick says and with his pen, he begins writing in the margin of one of the pages, making notes to himself.

"Then I figured I'd go and marry Beth," Daryl continues.

"Sounds good to me. Guess Michonne's not that crazy after all," Rick comments and Daryl's eyebrows furrowed at that; having never expected Rick to say something like that because apparently, the man had been listening to what he had been saying after all.

"What the hell that mean?" Daryl can't help, but ask.

Rick smirks, lifting his eyes and looking him from across the desk. "It means that you've been mooning for that girl ever since she moved in across the hall from you."

"I didn' or don't moon over nothin'," Daryl grumbles and Rick smiles. Actually smiles.

Daryl wonders if that's progress.

But he wonders if that's actually the truth. He always knew Beth was a beautiful woman. He never denied that to himself. He still remembers the first day he met her; watching her from the front doorway of the apartment as she slowly turned in a circle as she stood in the empty living room, looking at every angle of it with a slight smile on her face. He couldn't believe that a girl who looked like her would actually be in Scott.

Hell, he still can't really believe it.

Then he started spending more time with her and getting to know her and everything he has found out, he finds himself just wanting to know more. Every second he spends with Beth, it never feels like it's enough and that has never happened to him before. He's still getting used to it, he supposes; to wanting to be confused for a hermit to wanting to spend every free second he has with a woman. A _pregnant_ woman, who's going to give birth soon. And if this whole thing isn't weird enough, Daryl really can't wait to meet that little baby.

"Actually, I've been thinking about Beth," Rick says and leans back in his chair. He scrubs his hands tiredly over his face and then reaches into the bag for the bottle of lemonade. "We decided that she'd go on maternity leave during her eighth month and she's just about there. I'm thinking Martinez can fill in for her at the jail during her time off."

"Good idea," Daryl gives a nod of agreement.

"It'll be a miracle if Theresa ever lets Martinez work the street again," Rick then says and sounds tired all over again as he looks at the papers in front of him. He takes a chug of lemonade. "You have a cigarette?" He asks, his eyes looking to Daryl.

"You don't smoke," Daryl feels the need to point out to him.

Rick stands up and begins walking out of the office and Daryl feels like he has no choice, but to follow him. He doesn't think this is what Michonne had in mind. She asked him to try and get the man out of his office and though Rick _is_ leaving his office, it's to go outside and fill his lungs up with smoke and somehow, Daryl thinks that maybe this is all defeating the purpose. But he follows after him anyway and once they're both in the parking lot, Daryl takes out his pack and hands one to Rick while keeping one out for himself.

They stand there for a moment, smoking in silence.

Rick then exhales a long stream through his nose. "You serious? About what you said about Beth?" The man asks, looking at Daryl.

Daryl gives him a look. "Don't even know if I love the girl or not. Shouldn' I know that before I start even thinkin' about gettin' married?"

"You do," Rick then informs him. "You're just too much of a pussy to admit it."

Daryl frowns at him. "Just because it's against the law to punch a Sheriff in the face doesn' mean that I won't."

Rick actually grins at that. "The only reason you're going to punch me is because I'm speaking the truth and you can't handle it."

"It ain't been that long," Daryl says. "This thing between me and her."

Rick shrugs. "Sometimes, two people don't need long at all. Look at me and Lori. We had been together since junior high when we got married."

Daryl just keeps frowning and he narrows his eyes the longer he looks at Rick, but the man just keeps on grinning and smoking his cigarette. All he was doing was trying to say outlandish shit to try and get a reaction out of Rick and now, they're talking about love and him marrying Beth and what the hell? He can't marry Beth. It's way too soon for that thought to even be in his head and staying there. He can't think about it because she won't want to marry him. Knowing Beth, she'll tell him that she can't marry him because she has a baby and she'll question him why he would want to marry _her_.

As if being single and having a baby makes her less of a person.

As if he's not crazy about her and he's pretty sure she's crazy about him and that's what should matter and nothing else.

Daryl almost groans and punches himself in the head.

Why the hell can't he stop thinking about this? He doesn't want to get married. He doesn't care how much likes Beth. He's just not the kind of guy who gets married and Beth probably can see that for herself; another reason why she'll say that she can't marry him if he's _ever_ stupid enough to mention it to her.

Beth's going to be having a baby in just a couple more months. A baby girl. And Daryl doesn't know how to be a guy good enough for Beth – though he thinks he's learning – let alone a guy good enough to be around any baby, but especially Beth's. He babysits his friends' kids and the kids seem to not have a problem with him, but that's different. He likes his friends and those kids, but he doesn't _love_ them.

Oh, Christ. And there it is. Now, he's got himself thinking about and convinced that he loves Beth or something and her baby. What the hell is the matter with him?

Daryl goes back to glaring at Rick. "Pretty sure I despise you," he grumbles.

Rick just grins.

The next time Michonne calls him, asking him for a favor, no matter how small that favor might be, Daryl is going to tell her, as kindly as possible, to go straight to hell.

…

Beth goes somewhere every Wednesday evening, but where, she doesn't offer the information to him so Daryl doesn't pry.

Every Wednesday, after work for the day, instead of going to Beth's for dinner, he stops and gets himself something – usually a sandwich from Magnolia's – and heads home. He's gotten so used to going over to Beth's nearly every night for dinner and a movie or just hanging out with her and talking, that when he's not over there – with her – Daryl admits that he's not entirely sure what to do with himself and he's just not used to that because he's been on his own for so long, but with Beth coming into town – and into his life – he finds himself growing dependent on her to fill his days, it almost makes him angry just thinking about it.

He learned that lesson so long ago – not to rely on anyone for anything because in the end, there's no one a person can depend on besides themselves – but with Beth, he's gone and forgotten the whole damn thing and maybe he's glad they spend Wednesday nights apart.

The instant he walks through the door, Lemon is there and Daryl smiles a little as the cat rubs himself all over his ankles and weaving himself in and out through Daryl's legs. Daryl heard that cats can rarely be affectionate animals, but Daryl's not seeing that with Lemon. Maybe it's because of how this little guy's life started out and Daryl saved him from it, but Lemon is pretty damn attached to him and Daryl's not going to lie. That feels good.

He goes into the kitchen and pours fresh, cold water into Lemon's water dish and makes sure the cat still has food in his other bowl and leaving his bag with dinner on the counter for the moment, Daryl heads back into his bedroom. Beth's apartment is nearly identical to his and the room she had chosen as her bedroom is the room that Daryl has as his as well.

Now that he's home for the night, he has no plans on leaving again and he changes out of his jeans and tee-shirt, going into the bathroom to take a shower to wash the dirt, sweat and grime from the day off of him. He washes his hair and his body and then remains standing beneath the warm spray of water for a few more minutes and he can't stop himself from thinking about Beth. Of course he is thinking about Beth. He thinks about her all of the damn time and he has no idea if she thinks about nearly as much. When she's behind her desk, getting the information of the kids that have been arrested and brought in for booking, does her mind ever wander to thoughts of him? Does she look at the clock and wonder what he's doing at that exact moment?

Because Daryl does that. All of the damn time.

Relationships aren't his area of expertise – obviously. Would have to be in a relationship to be an expert on them; or to at least know what the hell is going on or what he is doing. He thinks he's in a relationship right now though. They spend all of their free time together and they've gone out on a date and they kiss. A lot. Daryl's pretty sure that's what a relationship is and if not, what the hell _is_ a relationship then? He wishes he was better at talking because this would be something that he should talk with Beth about.

How stupid is he though for not knowing already what they are to each other? He's thinking about what it would be to marry her, for fuck's sake, and he doesn't even know if he can call her his girlfriend or not.

He can hear Merle chuckling in his head.

 _Pathetic_.

Daryl's not going to tell Merle to shut the hell up though because Merle is completely right.

This girl moves to town and turns everything in his life upside down and Daryl doesn't even recognize these thoughts in his head anymore.

Daryl bows his head forward and closes his eyes and feels the water drum down around him. And then, he can feel Beth behind him, too. There's no baby bump though. When she presses her body against his, it's her small, slight frame and her body seems to mold to his back perfectly. Her arms slip around his waist and her lips brush along his shoulder blades and Daryl whispers her name, his hand rubbing along her arm.

Beth giggles then, sounding breathless, and standing on the tips of her toes, she kisses the side of his neck – soft, light kisses that he can feel, causing every single nerve in his body to stand on edge and let out a crackle as if they are shooting off electric currents.

"Daryl," Beth whispers his name then and he keeps his eyes closed as her hand dips down lower and he lets out a groan as her fingers close around his length, gentle and light and so damn teasing and he must have said that out loud because she lets out a breathless laugh.

"Tell me that I'm making you feel good," she whispers in his ear as her hand begins to slowly move up and down, following his length, her fingers twisting ever so slightly, working him over to make him as hard as possible. "You're so thick, baby," Beth whispers. She won't talk about a whisper and he's on fire, but her whisper is making him shiver. "Whenever you're inside of me, you're so thick, it sometimes feels like a bat, splitting me in two. You make me feel so good when you're inside of me."

Her words make him groan louder and her hand speeds up.

Daryl can just imagine how tight she is.

"Am I making you feel good?" Beth asks.

"So good," Daryl pants as if he's running and her hand only goes faster. He grinds his teeth together and pushes his hips out into her hand. "Beth," he groans as he explodes and shoots onto the tiled wall of the shower.

"So good, baby," Beth whispers. "I love you," she says before kissing the back of his neck.

"I love you, too," Daryl pants and he finds himself leaning back towards her. But then, she's gone so suddenly, he nearly stumbles backwards, his mind having thought – for a moment – that Beth was really in that shower with him.

The water has gone cold now and the water washes his cum from the wall and he leans back against the far wall, panting, trying to catch his breath and feel his legs beneath him again.

When he finally leaves the shower, Daryl finds himself that he can hardly look at himself in the mirror. It's been a long time since he's had a sexual fantasy about _any_ woman like that; let alone have one that made him loose himself as hard as just had. He's already wondering how the hell he is going to look Beth in the eyes when he sees her tomorrow.

In his bedroom, he changes into a fresh white tee-shirt and some gray sweatpants and runs the towel over his damp hair, tossing it over the shower bar to dry, before heading into the kitchen. He grabs his sandwich and a can of Coke from the refrigerator and then all but collapses onto his couch.

He still feels like he's trying to catch his breath.

Lemon hops up on the cushion next to him and Daryl smiles a little, scratching him on the bone of his head, between his two ears – his favorite spot – and Lemon purrs in appreciation. Daryl keeps it up for a few more minutes before he stops to take the remote from the coffee table and turn on the television. He doesn't have cable. He doesn't see the point in paying for three hundred channels when he doesn't watch that much television anyway. He gets the basic channels though and he winds up watching _Jeopardy_.

But even watching something as innocent as _Jeopardy_ seems, it's all but impossible now because it's not just sitting on his couch, eating a sandwich and watching television. Because suddenly, Beth is there, too, sitting next to him – dressed in pajamas and eating her own sandwich, giving her answers each time Trebek reads something and she is laughing because – as she says – she knows nothing.

But there's just not him and Beth there that night. There's a baby, too. A baby girl, sitting up on a blanket they have spread out for her in front of the television, and she's playing with the toys that are spread out all around her and she babbles to herself, giggling, and Daryl stares at her like he's never seen a baby before. And then the baby girl turns her head and sees Daryl looking at her and she smiles at him; smiles at him like she knows him.

Daryl finds himself smiling a little in return because he feels like he knows her, too.

…

"What has gotten into you tonight?" Beth asks, laughing and breathless, once their lips part.

"Shit. 'm sorry," Daryl says, feeling his ears flush, and he pushes his hands down, ready to push himself off, but Beth's hands grip his biceps before he can.

"I didn't tell you to stop. I just need to breathe for a second. Breathing is very important," Beth teases him and her lips are swollen and her cheeks are flushed and fuck, she's beautiful and what the hell is she doing here? "Where else would I be?" Beth asks and Daryl realizes that he's just asked that question out loud.

Daryl is quiet, thinking that over, making sure he chooses his words carefully so not to get her angry or hurt her feelings.

They are on the couch in her living room, she laying down and Daryl _kind of_ laying on top of her, her bump preventing him from being all the way on top of her, but that doesn't stop him from feeling him grow hard in his jeans. He tries his hardest to keep it away from her thigh. She doesn't need to feel that and think he's just some huge-ass pervert who can't even kiss her without getting turned on like horn dog.

"Just somethin' that's a fact," Daryl shrugs, trying to look casual even though deep down, he feels something he hasn't feel since he was a little kid. He feels scared. "You could be with any guy in the world."

Beth looks up at him and with a faint smile, she shakes her head as her fingers brush some of his too-long hair out of the corner of his eye. "Why would I want to be with any guy in the world when I can be here with you?"

Daryl stares at her and then after a moment, he shakes his head. "You can't say shit like that to me, Beth."

"Why not?" She asks, laughter bubbling in her throat.

He just shakes his head again. He can't tell her; can't tell her what he's been thinking for the past few days. "Gives me all sorts of ideas I don't have a right to have," is all he tells her.

"Who says you don't have a right?" Beth asks and she's starting to frown now and her brow is furrowed, not understanding, and Daryl closes his eyes, swallowing.

"You're too good for me," he manages to get out and when she sighs, he looks at her again.

"You really need to stop putting me on some sort of pedestal, Daryl," she tells him. "I don't belong up here at all. It's lonely up here and if I'm going to be up here, you need to be up here with me."

He can't help, but snort at that, and Beth, having had her fingers sifting through his hair, gave his ear a gentle tug.

"Don't do that. Don't talk about yourself or think about yourself like that," she said. "There's plenty of room up here on this pedestal for the both of us or we can both stand on the ground. It doesn't matter which one as long as you see that wherever I am, that's where you belong, too."

Daryl stares at her and he has no idea what to say to that. No one in his life has ever said anything like that to him; have a person in his life who wants to be somewhere just because he's there, too. He's got friends, sure, and him and Merle are close as far as brothers living so far apart in every sense of the word can be, but he's never had anyone who is looking at him like Beth is looking at him right now; like he's the question and answer to everything racing through her own mind.

He stares at her and he decides right then and there that he's just going to go for it. What does he have to lose?

 _Everything_ , the word whispers to him.

Slowly, Daryl lowers his head back towards her, his lips nearly touching hers. "I love you," he whispers and he doesn't give her a chance to respond before he's kissing her again.

He feels her hands on his chest, not pushing him away, but giving the slightest pressure, her fingers curling into his shirt.

"Oh," she murmurs and he feels her smiling against his lips.

…

* * *

 **Thank you so much for reading and please take a moment to review!**


	20. Chapter 19

**Thank you to everyone. I can't thank you enough. I have no idea how long this story will be because I still have a few things planned so I guess, it will be as long as I need to tell the story. And a countless amount of thank yous to rckyfrk for the idea that I used at the end of this chapter. I loved it and I hope you all do, too!**

* * *

…

 **Nineteen.**

Beth has always wished that her life was a musical. Random moments where everyone burst out in the same song and choreographed dance. Whenever she is feeling down, she usually pops a musical into her DVD player and watches until she is smiling again and singing along, imagining how everything would just be _better_ if she could sing and dance through every day of her life.

And today is _definitely_ a musical movie moment.

Daryl loves her. He told her that he loved her. Without her even hinting to him that that was what she wanted, he told her. She hadn't even know that she _had_ wanted to hear those words until he said those three words to her. She never expected Daryl to say them to her. Look at her. She can be confused for a beluga whale right now, pregnant with another man's baby, and Daryl can still look at her and say that he loves her? It doesn't make any sense to her and yet, she hears those three words on repeat in her mind and she can't stop smiling as she thinks of nothing else except Daryl.

Daryl – who has been there for her since her very first day in Scott and has helped her in any way that he could – loves her. _He_ loves her. He loves _her_. He _loves_ her.

She can't think of anything else, but it still doesn't make any sense. Why would he love her?

Her own feelings for him have been growing and growing with each passing day though she has done her best to keep them down, hidden and buried within her where no one, but her would ever know of their existence. And she had done that for Daryl as much as for herself. She's been wanting to keep herself and Dot safe as well as Daryl. She knew she was falling for him weeks ago – maybe even months – and she knew that she couldn't rely on a man. She had fallen in love once and look at where that got her. She loved her baby. She had yet to hold her and she already loved her baby more than anything, but that didn't change the fact that Aiden had used her and had thrown her away as if she was nothing and her heart had laid, shredded at his feet. She knew she wouldn't be able to go through that again.

She is not comparing Daryl to Aiden. She is most definitely not, but sometimes, it's hard to keep the two separate. Aiden had had such an impact one her; the worst thing to ever happen to her, but also, one of the best because he helped her make Lucy or Holly and she would have her baby girl within just a couple of months.

Beth is still amazed sometimes at how happy she is. When she first took all of her money out of the bank and drove out of town, with no idea where she was going, she honestly thought that she would never be happy again. But then she found Scott and here, she has a good job and a good apartment and friends who care about her and she has Daryl. And he loves her. He loves her while she looks like this and she thinks he'll love her after.

Beth had gone back and forth the night before on whether she should tell him her own feelings, but every time she had opened her mouth, Daryl had been kissing her; almost as if he didn't want to hear what she was going to say.

"You're drifting again."

Beth snaps her eyes to the person sitting next to her and gives him – not for the first time that morning – an apologetic smile. "I'm sorry. I'm here. I really am."

Martinez smiles a little. "You're doing a shit job at showing me that desk jobs _aren't_ the end of the world." He is sitting in the chair next to hers behind the intake desk at the juvenile jail, his left arm in a sling and even though he is smiling and teasing her, Beth can see how tired he is. This is his first day back at work since the shooting.

"I don't think it's wise to say to the person training you that their job is horrible," Beth suggests as she moves her mouse to another screen she needs to show him.

"It's not like I'm calling _you_ horrible," he replies.

"And I thank you for that," Beth laughs. She shakes her head slightly. "And I'm sorry for being so distracted this morning. I love my job and I should show you why I do."

"It's alright," Martinez says with a slight shake of his head. "Theresa had the worst pregnancy brain, too. Was always forgetting things or thinking of things that would distract her. I got used to talking to her and having her a million miles away."

"Does it get better?"

"Sure," he shrugs. "In about ten years when your kid's able to do a few things without you watching their every move like a hawk. And even then, we still don't trust ours."

Beth laughs a little at that. "Like what?"

Martinez and Theresa have two sons – ten and eight – and she remembers how Shawn was at that age so she can just imagine how utterly exhausted Martinez and Theresa are all of the time. Then again, Maggie had been completely exhausting, too, so Beth won't be surprised if her baby grows into an endless ball of energy, too.

" _Always_ stand in the bathroom door when they're brushing their teeth," he advises. "If not, they'll say that they've brushed them, but really, they're just using the mouthwash and thinks that's good enough," he begins, leaning back in his seat, and Beth smiles, turning more towards him. "Don't let them take their own cookies. You want them to have two, _you_ give them two. Don't trust them to get their own."

"So being a parent is about never trusting your child?" She asks with a smile.

" _Never_ ," Martinez emphasizes and she lets out a laugh.

They both turn their heads towards the front doors when they hear them open and an officer enters, leading a girl in, her hands behind her back in handcuffs. Beth stands up and Martinez stands next to her. Beth asks the girls all of the preliminary questions, typing in her answers and printing off her inmate wristband.

"See?" Beth smiles as she turns back to Martinez and the officer leads the girl away for fingerprinting and searching. "Most are pretty easy to deal with when they come in here, but there are some… well, you know. You'll need to call for another officer to come and assist. Some of the kids are violent. You will be spit at and cursed at and told to go f yourself in the most creative of ways, as you know, but most of the kids are just scared."

Martinez nods and then sits down again, Beth lowering herself into her chair once again.

"You really like it?" Martinez asks her.

Beth doesn't hesitate in nodding. "I love it," she says with a soft smile. "I _never_ imagined myself doing anything remotely like this, but now, I can't really imagine doing anything else. It's funny the way life works out sometimes."

The door opens again and this time, Beth bursts into a smile, pulling herself to her feet.

Martinez looks at Daryl coming into the jail and then at Beth's smile. Martinez then smiles to himself and turns away, pretending to be busy with some of the paperwork Beth has shown him. Beth doesn't stop smiling as she steps around the counter and meets Daryl halfway as he walks towards her, a cake batter milkshake in his hand.

He smiles a little and holds it out to her and Beth takes it, stepping in as close to him as she can with her massive stomach between them, but Daryl smirks a little and reads her mind and leans his head down for a quick kiss.

"So what did I do to deserve this?" She asks, still smiling up at him as she holds the milkshake and she's smiling because her heart is flipping and her stomach is clenching and Dot is rolling herself around and this man loves her.

Daryl shrugs. "Was in the neighborhood. Thought you might be cravin' one."

"I'm _always_ craving one," she replies with a smile and Daryl smiles a little, too. "Thank you."

He gives a nod and he looks like he wants to say something else so Beth stands, waiting patiently. Over the months since she first met this man, she has learned that talking isn't necessarily Daryl's favorite thing to do and when he does talk, he tends to usually think carefully before speaking. Sometimes, he does blurt something out without thinking – like most people – but Beth doesn't think about what he had said to Rick in the Sheriff's office anymore, and Beth waits for his mind to decide what he wants to say.

"Do you like Steve McQueen?" Daryl finally speaks, asking her something, she admits, seems a bit random to her, but Beth is learning that nothing is too random for Daryl. His words always have a purpose.

She laughs a little. " _Love_ might be the more appropriate name. He was my first celebrity crush when I was ten and watched _Bullit_ for the first time with my brother and daddy."

Daryl smiles a little at that. "The Towne's showin' _The Blob_ this weekend. Wanted to know if you wanted to come and see it with me."

"Yes," she answers without hesitating and Daryl smiles then as if he had honestly been expecting her answer to be anything else.

"Great," he says quietly and Beth wishes she didn't have this massive bump in front of her or that they weren't where she worked with Martinez probably watching because all she wants to do right now is kiss this man. Kiss him until she can't breathe and maybe do a few more things with him past kissing, too.

But – hopefully – there will be time for that at a later date.

"Thank you for my milkshake," Beth smiles up at him and for some reason, she almost starts to feel shy.

This handsome, wonderful man loves her. She honestly had been resigned to the fact that besides her daughter and her family, she would never have love in her life again. She obviously trusted the wrong men and looked for love in the wrong places, but here is Daryl and she had tried so hard to keep her own heart away and hadn't even been trying to win his, but she has and with it, he has her complete heart now, too.

She needs to tell him.

"Anytime," Daryl says with a little twitch of his lips and he then leans in, giving her a quick kiss on her forehead. "See you later?"

"Definitely," she nods up to him and he lifts his hand towards Martinez before he looks back to Beth and gives her one more little smile before he turns and leaves, Beth watching him until he's gone completely from view.

And once he's gone, she exhales a breath as if she's been holding it.

She turns back towards the desk and sees Martinez watching with a grin. "What?" She asks, her cheeks flushing though she has no reason to feel embarrassed.

"Nothing," he shakes his head, but it looks like he's going to laugh now.

"If you don't stop being mean to me, I'm calling Theresa on our lunch break and telling her all about it," Beth tells him innocently as she comes to sit back down in her chair and unwraps the straw, dunking it into the milkshake.

Martinez's grin immediately wipes away. "You wouldn't dare," he informs her though he doesn't sound exactly confident.

Beth just shrugs as she takes her first sip of milkshake and does her best to keep from smiling around her straw.

…

Mail is delivered around noon and Beth shows Martinez how to separate it. Jail mail goes into one box and inmate mail goes into another and that box will be taken to the jail mail room to be opened to make sure that nothing to being snuck in to one of the inmates.

The stack is usually a fairly large one every day and can take some time to sort through it all and separate it into its two boxes.

Beth pauses when she sees a letter addressed to her. _Elizabeth Greene_ and it's from the Bass County Juvenile Court System. Her brow furrows and she has no idea what it could be. Something that has to do with her job obviously, but what could it be? Usually, Sheriff Grimes calls her into his office if there's something he needs to discuss with her and he'll tell her if there's forms coming her way she needs to fill out. The last time she spoke with him had been last week, but that had been about her maternity leave starting soon and Officer Martinez filling in for her during her time.

Telling herself to stop wondering what it is and just get to opening it, Beth carefully tears open the flap and pulls the piece of folded paper out that is tucked inside.

"Bad news?" Martinez asks as Beth reads it over.

"No," she sighs with relief, having reminded herself for the countless time that it is illegal for an employer to fire an employee just for being pregnant. "I'm to appear in court the day after tomorrow."

Martinez's eyebrows shoot up at that. "What'd you do, Greene?" He asks.

"Nothing," she laughs and folds the letter back up to put into the envelope again. "Clarence's court hearing is finally happening. I'm to speak on his behalf."

Martinez is silent at that, still going through the piles of envelopes, and Beth looks at him to see that he's frowning.

"What?" She asks though she's pretty sure she doesn't want to hear what he's going to say.

Martinez shrugs and shakes his head at the same time. "Nothing. Just, be careful."

"There's nothing to be careful over," Beth responds back.

He looks to her. "Beth… these kids are in jail for a reason. They all weren't heading to church when they got arrested."

"I know that," Beth says, grabbing another few envelopes to sort. "But we all make mistakes and when one of these kids is really taking strives to change his life, why should another door be slammed in his face?"

She waits for Martinez to answer, but he doesn't and she looks at him and doesn't look away, waiting, wanting an answer from him. She understands where Martinez is coming from. His father was killed in the line of duty and he had just been shot by a man who was resisting arrest. Of course he's going to think that everyone in jail is the worst person.

But Beth can't look at the world like that. That means that no one can ever change and how terrible a world would that be if that was true?

"I just don't want to see you get burned, Beth," Martinez finally speaks. "You're too good a person for that to happen to."

Now Beth is the one to be quiet and not respond to that.

She's already been burned. Horribly. And she's still here. She's survived. And if it happens to her again, she'll survive. Again.

…

She misses her family. _Really_ misses them. Talking with them on Skype is better than nothing, but as Dot's due date approaches and she gets bigger and bigger, Beth wishes her parents and Maggie and Shawn were here for every step of the way. Maybe she can call them now and tell them where she is. They can come and see her and be here for the birth of their granddaughter and niece. She has been nervous about telling them where she is because she's been so convinced that they will force her or guilt her in leaving Scott and returning home with them, but she's an adult. She's a mom. She makes her own decisions. She can let them know – under no circumstances – will she move from Scott.

This is her home and after these months living here, her life is here.

She can't just leave her life. She can call her family and they can come and visit, but when they leave again to go back home, they will be leaving without her and Beth makes sure that they understand that.

After stopping at Milton's after work – buying some magazines and a big box of Junior Mints for when she and Daryl go to The Towne – Beth heads home. She had defrosted some ground beef the night before and it is currently in our refrigerator. It won't be the most original dinner, but she's thinking that tonight, she'll just make some Hamburger Helper. But maybe before she starts dinner, she'll see if her parents have a moment to Skype and during the conversation, she'll tell them – finally – where she is and ask them if they would like to visit. Even finding herself friends here in Scott, and Daryl, it has been hard to be away from her mom and daddy and Maggie. Hard and scary and she's proud of herself for having made it this far without having them to lean on, but that doesn't mean that she intends to never see them in person again.

It's time.

When she pulls into the apartment parking lot, Beth frowns. There is a white panel van parked in one of the spots – Bo's Flood Clean-Up written on the sides – and she gets out, looking at it. Has there been water damage? How though? It hasn't rained for a few days and what rain they have gotten, it hasn't been nearly enough to cause any serious damage. The front door of the building is open, light from the hall spilling out on to the front steps and as she gets closer, Beth can hear vacuuming from inside.

Karen is standing there, talking with Joe Morales and Louis is standing next to his dad, the little boy's face red and his nose running.

"What happened?" Beth stops, asking them.

"I'm sorry!" Louis blurts out and looks like he's about to start crying all over again.

"I'm prepared to pay for whatever damages there are," Joe then says and the knot between Beth's eyebrows grows deeper as she looks to Karen.

"There was a little mishap today," Karen answers Beth's unasked question. "Louis was playing and he flushed one of his plastic green army men down the toilet."

"He was a special forces Navy SEAL," Louis sniffles as if that explains everything.

"The Morales's toilet backed up and flooded their bathroom and your apartment has received some water damage as well," Karen continues.

Beth can't help, but gasp. Her eyes swiftly fly to Joe. "Where is your bathroom?" She asks because if it's over any other room, that's fine. She'll deal with it. But if it's over the nursery-

Without waiting for Joe to respond, Beth rushes into the apartment building. The door to her apartment is open and there is a long, thick hose leading inside and she hears the powerful suction of a large vacuum. She carefully hurries over the hose so she doesn't trip and rushes inside her apartment.

"No, no, no," she shakes her head as she sees the hose leading right into Dot's nursery.

Daryl steps out then, wearing a face mask, and he pulls it down so it hangs around his neck. He stops for a moment when he sees her and she feels like she's about to burst into tears.

"'s alright," he says, seeing the devastation on her face and he comes to her, one hand reaching out to touch her elbow. Beth's hands go to his chest. "There's been a bit of damage-" he begins to tell her.

"Her furniture," she is gasping, about to start crying and she feels like she can't breathe.

"'s alright, Beth," Daryl says again and then gently guides her to step further into the living room and to get her out of the hallway. "We're gonna have to repaint and the rug needs to be thrown out. We'll refinish the floor again and everything will be as good as new."

"She's due in six weeks," Beth feels the need to tell him as her fingers grasp onto his shirt.

"I'll get it done in plenty of time," Daryl promises with a nod of his head.

"Her furniture," Beth repeats.

Thankfully, her crib still has to be put together, safely in its box, but everything else…

"I'll take care of it," Daryl promises her and Beth begins shaking her head in protest.

"No, you can't do that. I'll-"

"Beth," Daryl says her name, soft, but firm, and she looks at him, her mind racing, but he's staring at her and eventually, she begins to feel her own mind calm down. "It'll be fine."

And Beth finds herself nodding; believing him. She's not sure why. Her baby's nursery is damaged from toilet water; her baby that will be home in just a few more weeks. This is a disaster. Everything had been painted and clean and except for the crib, everything else had been put together and arranged in just the place where she wanted it. Dot's nursery had been perfect and now, it was all being torn up and she had just a few more weeks.

Honestly, she had every right in the world to have a complete and utter freak out right now.

But Daryl's hands were holding her arms and he was looking at her and he was perfectly calm – at least he seemed perfectly calm on the outside – and she found his calmness sweeping around her and holding her close like a warm blanket.

"Okay," she hears herself say.

Daryl leans in and kisses the side of her head. "There's another thing though," he then says and he sounds almost reluctant to have to say the next words that he has to.

"Oh, no," Beth can't help, but groan. "Is it the crib? Did the box get water damage, too?"

"Nah, the crib's fine," Daryl says with a shake of his head. "'s just that… while we're doin' all of this work, you can't stay in here. Too much dust and we're gonna be usin' chemicals…"

Beth frowns a little. She hadn't even thought of that. _Why_ hadn't she thought of that? Just because she already has a million things on her mind…

"The Morales family are headin' over to the motel and will be there for at least a week."

"Then I'll head there, too," Beth nods.

"You think that's best?" Daryl asks her and as Beth looks at him, she can see his ears start to turn pink. "You stayin' in a motel by yourself with no one around if somethin' happens?"

Beth is starting to catch on and Dot rolls around inside of her. "So, where should I stay?"

Daryl isn't looking at her face now; instead looking at the hands he still has on her arms. He's so tanned compared to her own pale skin.

He visibly swallows.

"I got an extra bedroom," he then answers.

…

* * *

 **Thank you so much for reading and please take a moment to review!**


	21. Chapter 20

**I don't know... I'm very nervous that Daryl is _so_ OOC in this story. **

* * *

…

 **Twenty.**

Daryl can't sleep, more than aware of the fact that Beth is in the bedroom across the hall, and he wonders if she's sleeping right now. He had helped her gather the things that she would need for the next few days while they cleaned up Dot's nursery from the water damage and back in his apartment, he grabbed his extra set of bed sheets from the closet and made the spare bed up for her.

"You don't have to do that," Beth had told him and Daryl had frowned a little at that.

"Don't have to do what? Give you clean sheets to sleep on?" He asked.

"You're doing too much for me already, Daryl," she began to protest, but Daryl didn't listen to her as he went into the second bedroom to get the bed ready for her.

When he had first moved into the apartment, he had just left the second room empty; nothing to put in there and no idea what to do with it. He honestly still is getting used to have so much room to move around in.

The house he lived in when he was a little kid and his mom was still alive was nothing more than a shack and then he lived in a trailer with his old man until he was sixteen and was able to get the hell out of there. And then, he just crashed on couches that belonged to friends of Merle's. When he moved to Scott and got himself a job and a place to live, it's the longest he's ever been in a single spot since he's been a kid and this is sure as hell the nicest place he's ever lived in. He has no problem calling this place his home.

He bought the spare bed unexpectedly – when he was thinking that maybe Merle would clean up his act and stay with him for a while. That hadn't happened, obviously, and Merle went to prison and Daryl was left with a spare bed that he didn't really have a need for.

Until now.

Now, it's the middle of the night, Daryl can't sleep and Beth is in that bed across the hall.

He wonders if she can sleep – being in a different bed in a different apartment. He wonders if Dot ever sleeps when she does or if she spends all night kicking Beth from the inside. He wonders if Beth is lying awake right now, just a few feet away, and thinking about him like he's thinking about her.

Daryl exhales a deep sigh and rolls onto his side, facing the window in the room now. The blinds are closed, but slivers of light from the lamppost on the street curb tries to push through into the dark room. He refuses to look at the clock; well aware that it is almost two o'clock in the morning and he has to go to work in a few more hours and he hasn't gotten any sleep. He tries to tell himself that he's exhausted; that he _needs_ sleep, damn it.

But his brain doesn't seem to give a crap about that because it won't shut the hell up.

So Beth is across the hall in his second bedroom. No big deal. She's been sleeping across the hall from him for months now – with a few doors between them a much larger hallway – but still. It's all the same damn thing, isn't it?

No. No, it's not and he's not stupid enough to think that it is because for the past few months, Beth has been in her _own_ apartment, in her _own_ bed, but now, she's here; so close now that if she is to cough in her sleep, Daryl will have no problem hearing her.

Sleep is not going to happen. He needs to stop kidding himself. He sits up and shoves the blankets off of him. He doesn't regret inviting her to stay with him. Hell. If she had gone to the motel, he wouldn't be sleeping right now, either; too worried that something would happen to her and no one would be there to help her. It's good she's here – even if Daryl doesn't see himself getting sleep anytime soon. What if he's sleeping and she needs him? And then there is just the simple fact that Beth is _here_ ; in his home, where he lives. The girl he's in love with is just a few feet away. How is he supposed to get any sleep?

Daryl stands up from his bed and heads out of the room. He pauses at the closed door across from his open one, but he doesn't hear anything inside. After a moment, he forces himself away, heading towards the kitchen. He doesn't want Beth to think he's creeping outside her bedroom door and make her think he's some stalker freak.

Lemon usually sleeps on the couch and when Daryl turns the light on in the kitchen, above the sink, the kitten lifts his head from the couch and gives his tail a lazy flick, looking at Daryl with curiosity, wondering what the hell he is doing up at this hour. Daryl wishes he had an answer to give the animal other than him being pathetic who can't sleep when Beth is sleeping in the room across the hall.

Daryl fills himself a glass of water and then turns the light off once again, heading towards the living room and the couch. As he sits down, making sure not to sit on Lemon, he grabs the remote control from the coffee table and turns the television on, immediately muting it. He doesn't expect anything to be on right now. No one's up at this hour except insomniacs and drunks and since he doesn't have that many stations anyway, Daryl isn't expecting to find anything besides infomercials. He freezes though when on one of the stations, there is an old episode of _Jeopardy_ playing.

The last time he watched this, he had imagined Beth and Dot being there, watching it with him, and now, Beth is actually here, in his apartment and here he is, watching _Jeopardy_.

He tells himself that it doesn't mean anything and it's just a stupid gameshow and it's been on for so many years, it shouldn't be a surprise that some station is playing it at this hour.

He tosses the remote onto the cushion on the other side of him and he sinks a little further into the couch and Lemon stretches his body out alongside Daryl's thigh, going back to sleep. On mute, Daryl can read the questions, but can't hear the answers, but it doesn't matter. He just keeps sipping his water and watching the show and tries to not be stuck on the fact that Beth is sleeping on the other side of the wall where his television is.

He stills when he hears mattress springs squeak and then a floorboard creaks and a moment later, Daryl hears the door to the bedroom that Beth is sleeping in open slowly. He sits up a little straighter on the couch and watches the hallway; seconds later, Beth appearing, looking as if she hasn't managed to get any sleep either.

She stands there and looks at him, her lips turning upwards in the tiniest smile.

"Fancy meeting you here," Beth says and he smirks a little.

He tries not to look at what she's wearing to bed – a huge tee-shirt that drapes over her massive bump that seems to grow every day and a pair of green pajama shorts that show off just as much thigh as the dresses she wears does and yet, to Daryl, this is completely different. This is what Beth _sleeps_ in. This is what she lies in _bed_ , wearing.

He feels his throat go completely dry at that and he takes a swig of water, reminding himself to swallow and not choke on it.

"Can't sleep?" He finally manages to ask.

"Dot is driving me crazy," Beth says as she moves towards the couch and she comes around to sit down on his other side so she doesn't disturb Lemon.

Daryl hurries to his feet and she gives him a smile as he helps her slowly lower herself down, a hand holding hers and his other on her back, and once she looks settled, Daryl sits down once more next to her. She gives a yawn and leans into him, resting her head on his shoulder, and Daryl expects himself to tense up at the affection, but he doesn't. Instead, he settles back into the couch once again and smiles to himself and tries to not make it obvious that he's smelling her hair. He doesn't want to scare her and make her think he's weird.

"Can I feel her?" Daryl asks.

Beth smiles and without answering, she takes his hand and guides it over her stomach.

After feeling the baby kicking up a storm, Daryl frowns. "Damn, lil' Dot, take it easy on your ma," he grumbles and Beth laughs. He leans a little closer into the bump. "If you're nervous, no reason for you to be. I'm gonna make everythin' as good as new before you come home."

Before he can stop himself, he kisses the bump and Dot seems to have settled down, but then he freezes, realizing what he had just done. He waits for Beth to say something, but when she is just as quiet as him, Daryl slowly – almost hesitantly – lifts his head again, too afraid to meet her eyes, but he does anyway. Her reaction isn't what he was expecting. He thought – for some reason – that she would be angry or even a little put off at his words.

But instead, Beth is looking at him and her eyes are welling with tears. Daryl lifts his head a little more, thinking of something he should say to her, but he can't think of anything.

He has a lot of things to tell her; he knows that. He's already told her that he loves her and he does, but there's even more than that. He wants to tell her that he's not going anywhere; that he has every plan in the world to stick around – if she wants him to. He loves her and he means it because even though he's never been in love before and hasn't had a lot of it in his life, but he figures that this _has_ to be love because he's never felt anything like this before like he feels towards her right now.

He wants to tell her that – if she'll have him and if she wants him to – he wants to be a part of her life and her baby's for as long as she wants.

There's so much to say and yet, Daryl can't seem to say any of it.

Instead, Beth is the one to speak first, the tears slowly rolling down her cheeks and he would have been concerned if it isn't for the smile beginning to form on her face. She lifts her hands to his head, fingers sifting through his hair, and she gently pulls him closer.

"I love you," she whispers and then she kisses him.

…

Daryl's not sure why he's feeling so disappointed. It's just a house. He, Tyreese and Karen have worked on houses and apartments all over Scott and some in Baker, too. This house is just a house and they renovated it so it could be put on the market and someone could buy it. So there's no reason for him to feel disappointed when he drives past the house and the "For Sale" sign swinging in the front yard now has a "Sold" sign on top of it.

It's just a house. There will be more.

There's no reason for him to pull his truck to the curb across the street and park there and look at the house, but he does it anyway.

He worked on those hardwood floors for a week. He found Lemon under that back porch. He, Tyreese and Karen painted the rooms and installed new windows and electrical outlets and a new water heater and pretty much everything that could be replaced in a house, they did. The house had been one of the biggest pits when Karen and Tyreese had bought it for hardly anything at auction and it had taken the most work and in the end, it had turned out to be one of the nicest – if not _the_ nicest – flips that they have done yet.

When they were finished and Tyreese and Karen put it on the market to sell, Daryl knew that it was too rich for his blood. He has money. Just not _that_ much money, but still, he had hoped – deep down – that it would sit on the market for a while and the price would drop and Daryl would be able to get it for himself. He's never owned a house before – especially a house that looks like this. It's probably the nicest house in Scott now and that should have let Daryl know that ever owning it was even more out of his reach.

He wonders who's bought it and when they're going to be moving in. Scott keeps growing and that's a good thing. More people means more money can be pumped into the town, but these people better treat this place right. Too much sweat and aches and pains went into making this house what it is now and it better stay exactly how it looks right now.

After another moment, looking at it and telling himself again that there will be other houses, Daryl pulls away from the curb and heads towards the juvenile jail. That morning, as they both got ready for work after just a couple of hours of sleep each – both out on the couch – and Beth made oatmeal and pushed a bowl into his hands as well even though he doesn't eat breakfast except for a couple pieces of toast, she asked if he wanted to go to Denny's for lunch because they have this sautéed zucchini and squash side that she absolutely loves and with the cake batter milkshake, it's all she wants. The combination sounds pretty disgusting to him, but Daryl sure as hell isn't going to tell her that.

She's just a couple of weeks away from beginning her maternity leave and he wants to get Dot's nursery back in order by then so Beth can spend the last weeks of her pregnancy as calm and relaxed as possible instead of stressing out over every single thing.

He pulls the truck into the parking lot and is about to hop out, but he sees Beth already coming out, walking towards him with a bright smile on her face. Daryl will _never_ tell her that as pregnant as she is right now, it looks like she's waddling. He smiles a little, too, as he gets out of the truck and walks to the passenger side, opening the door.

"Hi," she greets him with a smile and she tilts her head up and Daryl drops a kiss to her lips.

"Hey," he says with his own little smile and then taking her hand, he helps her up into the truck, before closing the door, making sure he's not slamming it on her skirt.

"How's your day?" Beth asks as he pulls the truck from the jail's parking lot and heads across the street to the Denny's.

"Good," he gives a nod. "Tyreese and me pulled up the floor in the Morales' bathroom. Not as much damage as we first thought."

That makes her gasp. "Really?"

"Really," he throws her a small smile. "So if there's not as much damage with theirs, yours shouldn't be that much to clean up either."

Beth lets out a breath at that. "That's the best thing you could have told me," she says.

He pulls into a parking spot as close as he can get to the front entrance of the restaurant. "Once we're done up in theirs, we'll get to yours. Cleanin' it out and paintin' and gettin' a new rug. It'll be back to new in jus' a lil' bit."

Beth is practically beaming right now. "You know it's not easy for me to lean across the seat," she says and he smirks a little before leaning over himself and she kisses him. "You are the best man I have ever met, Daryl Dixon," she whispers to him then.

He feels the tips of his ears turn red with embarrassment from the praise. "'s jus' because you haven't met that many guys."

"I have met all of the men I could ever want to know and you're the best. Next to my daddy, of course," she adds with a little smile and he smirks at that.

He wants to kiss her again so he does – short and light – and Beth sighs softly and it takes her a moment for her eyes to open again and she looks like it's the best kiss she's ever gotten. Daryl looks at her and he wants to smile a little and not for the first time, he thinks about the man who Beth had been with before. Aiden. Married and using the girl in front of him just for his own pleasure, not giving a shit about her feelings or what he did to her.

And not for the first time either, Daryl knows that if he ever crosses paths with him, he can't see Aiden being able to walk away after.

He just doesn't understand men who hurt women; whether physically or some other way. He doesn't understand why his old man used his mom as punching bag. He doesn't understand when he sees a guy shove a girl or yell at her or even points a finger in her face. He's probably just not programed that way to understand – thank God – but that doesn't mean that he doesn't _try_ to understand.

He looks at Beth and sees everything good in this world. She's kind and warm and pretty and she always has a smile for everyone – even the kids who are brought into the jail, throwing every swear word in the world at her and trying to spit at her. Daryl knows that if Merle wasn't locked up and came back here and met Beth, Beth would win his older brother over in no time. It's just who she is. She's just _good_.

And it just doesn't make any sense to Daryl that this Aiden guy couldn't see it for himself. And if he _could_ see it for himself, Daryl doesn't get why Aiden just didn't care. Daryl knows he'd do anything for Beth. She just has to ask. And she's not even here yet, but the same for Dot. She's not his, and he knows he has no right to be in her life, but he wants to be and Beth has said that she loves him so he can just hope that she'll keep loving him because already, he isn't too sure what he'd be doing without them.

He knows Beth blames herself for Aiden even though the prick pursued her and never told her that he was married and the poor girl had never had a clue, but Daryl hopes that she knows that he will never hurt her like that – or in any way. He'd kill himself first.

"Where'd you go?" She asks, breaking through his thoughts, and she lifts a gentle hand to his face, her thumb lightly swiping along his cheek. "You left me," she teased.

Daryl shook his head. "I don't plan on goin' anywhere," he hears himself say.

He's still leaning in close to her and Beth moves her lips back to his, kissing once again.

Daryl's eyes instantly close and her bump is pressing against his own middle so he can't get as close to her as he can, but he still tries. He wraps one arm around her waist, tightening it, and he feels Beth's hands slip from his face and one comes to a rest on his chest and the other rests on his bicep, her fingers grasping the arm.

Their mouths eventually part so they can breathe.

"When you say that," Beth whispers. "I believe you."

"You should," Daryl responds. "I don't say things I don't mean."

Beth stares at him, looking into his eyes and nowhere else, and he wonders what she's thinking. She's usually an open book and because of those wide eyes of her, he can't imagine her being able to ever hide anything, but right now, he doesn't have a clue as to what's running through her mind and he wonders if he should be a little nervous.

He never would have expected a girl like this in his life; especially a girl he would fall for and it's not just because she's about to give birth to a baby who's not even his. It's just because he looks at her and he sees everything he's never had and didn't even know he ever wanted. He wonders what she sees when she looks at him.

"I really miss my family," she speaks in a quiet voice. "I was thinking of finally telling them where I am and _when_ they come to visit me, I want them to meet you."

Daryl doesn't know if he likes the sound of that. He's never met a girl's parents' before, but despite that, he swallows and gives his head a nod. "A'right," he's able to say.

Beth smiles a little and her hand lifts to his face again. She begins rubbing her knuckles gently along his cheek and he feels like purring just like Lemon does. She's still staring into his eyes and he's staring into hers and he feels something changing around them, but he can't be sure what it is. He just feels it – whatever it is. Something is definitely changing and he can just hope that it's something for the better.

"You ready for lunch?" He then asks.

"God, yes," she says and Daryl hears himself actually let out a laugh.

…

"You're doing what?" Rick sits up straight in his chair and looks at Daryl and waits for Daryl to repeat himself because he's been around so much gunfire so he knows his hearing isn't what it used to be, but he's not some old deaf man and yet, he needs Daryl to say it again.

Daryl frowns at him as he sits in the chair on the other side of Rick's desk, a little slouched. He shrugs as if trying to play it all off as no big deal, but inside, his stomach is jumping around like he just drank too much Jacks and he's ready to throw up all over the place.

"You heard me," he practically mutters.

Rick gives him a stern look. "Say it again, Daryl. Unless you don't really mean it."

That gets Daryl sitting up straight and he gives Rick a glare. "'Course I mean it. I love that girl and I'm gonna ask her to marry me. Now are you gonna come help me pick out a ring or not?"

…

* * *

 **Thank you very much for reading and please take a moment to leave a review!**


	22. Chapter 21

**I'm so happy I was able to get this one done and posted before the long weekend. I hope you like it! The response to this story just continues to blow me away.**

* * *

…

 **Twenty-One.**

She's in love. She's head-over-heels, ridiculously stupid, break out into song in love with Daryl Dixon and she sits, waiting for her appointment with Dr. Douglas, well aware of the fact that she's smiling like an idiot, but she can't get herself to stop. When she thinks about Daryl – which is often – she thinks about how she's in love with him and she smiles because not only she is in love with a man, but she's _happy_.

When she left home seven months earlier, scared and shattered, she never thought anything like this would ever happen to her. She never even _imagined_ it. Aiden had taken her heart and had completely pulverized it and had left nothing behind. The first time she saw the fluttering heart of her baby, Beth knew that she loved Dot more than anything, and she would be giving birth to someone who would love her in return. But other than her child loving her, Beth had never anticipated any more love than that in her life again.

But if she thinks about it – really thinks about it – Beth can't hate Aiden even if she wants to because if he hadn't done all that he had done, she never would have left home and she never would have even known that Scott, Georgia exists and she wouldn't have a job she absolutely loves and a wonderful apartment – once it's clean like new again – and she wouldn't have friends who are just genuinely wonderful people. But most of all, she wouldn't have Daryl. She never would have met him or even know that someone like him was out in the world.

And sitting in the reception area of Dr. Douglas's office, Beth thinks of Daryl and smiles. Dot rolls around inside of her and Beth's smile softens as her hands rest over her daughter. Just a few more weeks and then she'll be here and Beth will be able to hold her in her arms. Finally. Beth's arms absolutely ache for her and she can't wait to hold her and look at her daughter for the first time.

She really needs to decide on a name for her. Holly or Lucy. Some days, Beth thinks she's decided on Holly, but then others, she thinks that she likes Lucy a lot more. She's hoping that once her little girl is out here and in her arms, Beth will take one look at her and just know what her name is supposed to be.

The door that leads to the back exam office opens and Dr. Douglas is standing there, smiling that toothy smile of his as he always is, and Beth smiles, too upon seeing him.

"Need some help?" He asks, already stepping forward.

"No, no," Beth waves him away before bracing her hands on the armrests of the chair and pushing herself up to her feet. "I'm getting pretty good at it," she then says, almost laughing, and Dr. Douglas is smiling so wide, he's almost laughing.

That morning as they had been getting themselves ready for their days, Daryl had actually asked if she wanted him to come to her doctor's appointment with her, and for half a second, Beth almost told him yes, she would love if he came, but she stopped herself before she could give him that answer. She wanted him to come, but she didn't _need_ him to come. She had been going to her doctor's appointments by herself for the past few months on her own and she didn't want to give Daryl the impression that she was relying on him for anything. Yes, she loved him and he loved her, but still… in the deepest part of her, she wasn't sure if she wanted to get accustomed to having him around.

Dr. Douglas shows her to the exam room and then gives her a moment of privacy so she can change from her clothes into one of the gowns. He then comes back, taking her weight and her blood pressure and listening to her heartbeat. Despite having eaten boxes of Cheez-Its and treated herself to countless cake batter milkshakes, she actually hasn't gained _that_ much weight – thank goodness. She does admit that she looks slightly ridiculous. Some women look beautiful when they're pregnant. Beth is not under the illusion to think that she is one of those women. Honestly, she looks like a toothpick with a beach ball taped to her middle so not only is she so excited to hold her baby girl – finally – she's ecstatic to get her body back to looking somewhat normal.

"How are you feeling?" Dr. Douglas asks first as he always does as Beth sits on the exam table and he is sitting on his wheeled stool in front of her with her chart.

"Tired," she replies. "Ready for her to be born. Tired," she says again and he grins.

"Just wait until she's born. You're probably not going to sleep for the next eighteen years." Dr. Douglas writes something in her chart before looking at her again. "You drinking plenty of water?" He asks.

Beth can't help, but frown. "I already look and feel like a beluga whale."

"Water, Beth," he tells her in his serious "doctor" tone and Beth doesn't argue. They both know that although she complains, she will do anything he feels she needs to do.

It doesn't matter how many times Beth sees her. Every time Dr. Douglas squirts the cold gel on her stomach and runs the transducer over it, and the black and white grainy image of her baby girl appears on the screen, Beth's eyes fill with tears. Just a few more weeks, Beth whispers to herself. Just a few more weeks and she'll be here, crying and in her arms, and Beth has never been more excited – or terrified – of anything than that.

Dr. Douglas's offices are in a renovated large Queen Anne house and Beth thought it was one of the most beautiful homes she had ever seen the first time she had come here for an appointment. There is a small hospital in Baker and Dr. Douglas had given her the option of delivering there, but Beth chose to have her baby in his offices. He has an exam room and then a delivery room that, upon seeing it, Beth knows is as stocked and fully equipped as any hospital room, and then he has a recovery room. Dr. Douglas also lives on the second floor of the house so Beth knows that he will always be right there whether she comes knocking on his door at two in the afternoon or two in the morning.

"Your maternity leave officially starts," Dr. Douglas says once the gel is cleaned from her stomach and she has changed from the gown back into her dress and he hands her a piece of folded paper. "A doctor's note to take to Sheriff Grimes so he knows and I want you to take it easy these last couple weeks. Get plenty of rest. Get her room ready. Don't do anything too strenuous or something that would stress you or upset you."

Beth nods as she listens. Her room. Daryl had told her that morning that he and Tyreese will be painting it and she has bought a new rug from Babies R' Us and they'll be laying that down for her, too. Daryl said that it's also high time that her crib gets put together, too. With everything getting done today in her own apartment, Beth knows that by tonight, she'll be able to sleep in her own bed again and stop staying at Daryl's and she has been telling herself constantly that she's fine with that. Why wouldn't she be?

It is probably for the best anyway. She finally told Annette the night before on Skype where she is and Beth expects her family to be arriving at any moment; dropping everything to drive across the state to see her finally for the first time in months. It will be for the best if when they arrive, they find Beth staying in her own apartment rather than in a man's.

"Almost there now," Dr. Douglas grins and Beth beams in return. "Call me if you need me. Day or night," he then tells her as he tells her at the end of every appointment.

Beth leaves the house with as much bounce in her step as she can manage right now. She rubs her bump as she heads down the steps and the walkway, heading back towards the sidewalk. "Almost here, Dot," she tells her daughter. "Almost."

Aiden had been one chapter. This pregnancy has been another. And now, Beth is more than ready to move onto the next chapter – whatever that might be.

…

"You're acting very strange," Beth feels the need to tell Daryl as he opens her door for her and helps her step down from the truck.

"I'm actin' how I always act," Daryl tells her, but she shakes her head at that.

"No, there's something… off," she says, looking up to his face, studying him, but unable to say what exactly it is that seems off to her.

He had picked her up from her doctor's appointment even though she tells him repeatedly that he's not her private taxi and she's perfectly fine walking home. Daryl never seems to want to hear that though and lets her know that he has no problem picking her up or driving her whenever she has somewhere she needs to go.

"Off?" He asks her with his eyebrows raised.

"I don't know," Beth then admits with a slight laugh and shake of her head. "It just looks like you're thinking of a million different things right now."

He shrugs and closes the door behind her. "Maybe I am," is all he says and Beth slips her hand into his, not pressing him for anything further. This man doesn't speak often and when he does, it is with purpose, and when he _is_ pushed to say something, he usually winds up saying the completely wrong thing. "I hope you like the nursery," he then tells her.

Beth smiles up at him as they walk towards the front door of their apartment building.

"Is that what you're worried about? Because there is no reason to be. I am going to love it," she assures him and gives his hand a squeeze. "And Dot's going to love it, too," she adds and Daryl smiles a little at that and he gives her hand a squeeze in return. He doesn't say anything else as he reaches out and opens the outer door for her, letting her enter first.

"You're happy here, right, Beth?" Daryl asks, stopping her outside her apartment door.

Beth instantly frowns and her brow furrows. "What are you talking about?"

He stands in front of her, but his eyes seem to have difficulty meeting hers. "Here, in Scott. I jus' mean… you're happy livin' here?" He then asks and glances at her for only a second before his eyes lower again towards the carpeted floor.

She still has no idea what he's talking about or _why_ he's talking about this, but she steps as close to him as she can and put her hands on either side of his neck, her thumbs beneath his chin, and she tries to lift his face so he will look at her.

"Moving here and meeting you, they're the best things to ever happen to me," she tells him in a soft, yet firm, voice and Daryl finally seems to be able to lift his eyes to look at her. She keeps staring into his, hoping that he can see just how much she means those words. "Are you happy?" She then decides to ask him.

"'ve never been this happy before," Daryl replies without any waiting to and Beth melts into a soft smile because she knows that Daryl wouldn't say such a thing if he didn't mean it.

She gently pulls on his head and Daryl leans in, lowering his lips to hers and kissing her. Beth's eyes slide shut as she immediately loses herself to the feeling of Daryl's lips on hers. She wonders if he loses himself to her like she does to him. She wonders if his stomach ever clenches when he sees her or if he feels like he's burning and shivering all at the same time.

"I love you," she murmurs to him once their lips part and her eyes remain closed.

"I love you, too," he murmurs back and Beth can't wait until Dot is born so she can wrap her arms around him and he can wrap his arms around her and hold her close to his body.

Daryl looks at her for another moment longer before putting his fingers around the door knob and turning, pushing the door open. Her apartment is dark inside; much too dark for it being the middle of the day and her brow furrows, wondering why the blinds are pulled down over her windows. Her apartment gets the most amazing sunlight in the afternoons.

She takes a step over the threshold and Daryl's arm goes past her, finding the light switch on the wall and flipping it up.

"SURPRISE!"

And thank goodness Daryl is standing strongly behind her because Beth takes a hurried step backwards, startled, and lands straight into his chest and his hand goes to her side, steadying her. It takes Beth's mind a moment to register what her eyes are seeing in front of her and when she understands what it is, she promptly bursts into tears.

…

Beth can't stop hugging Annette and she has yet to let go of Maggie's hand, bringing her mom and sister around the room, introducing everyone who has come to the baby shower. The apartment is decorated in pink – so much damn pink, as she heard Daryl grumble; pink and white balloons, pink and white streamers and a pink and white sign, announcing to the world that Beth is having a baby girl.

There is a large bowl of pink lemonade along with the foods that has been brought in and the desserts are cupcakes with pink frosting – each one with a different name in white icing: Lucy or Holly – pink cotton candy and a few bowls of pink Starbursts. On her kitchen table and on the floor, there are wrapped presents and more than one person in attendance is wearing pink in one form or another. Michonne has gotten Rick to wear a pink polo shirt.

Tears are still stinging Beth's eyes as she says hello to everyone, hugging everyone, and as if the baby shower that Lori and Michonne planned isn't enough of a surprise, her family being there certainly is. When she had told them yesterday evening where she was, sure enough, they wanted to leave immediately but decided to wait until at least dawn since they didn't want to drive in the dark when they didn't know exactly where they were going.

Arriving that morning in Scott, they had just missed Beth as she had left for her appointment at Dr. Douglas's, but they had arrived to see Daryl letting Michonne and Lori into the apartment so they could begin decorating for the surprise baby shower they had planned. Even after everything that had happened to her, it is still amazing to Beth how things just work out and fall into place exactly how they're supposed to.

"It's quite a nice place, Bethy," Hershel smiles as he finishes walking around her apartment, going into every room and opening every door, clearly inspecting things closely.

Beth smiles proudly. "It's _perfect_ , daddy," she corrects him. "Daryl did most of the renovation work on the entire building. I guess this was one of their biggest projects."

Hershel looked at his daughter. "Daryl," he says his name and then says nothing else. "And is he…" he trails off, looking towards her very large belly and Beth's not sure, but she feels her cheeks warm with a blush.

"I didn't know him then, daddy," Beth tells him. "You know that."

"I was just wondering. He seems quite taken with both you and my granddaughter."

Beth's blush deepens at that.

Beth and Maggie go into the baby's nursery and again, tears flood Beth's eyes. It's _perfect_. Completely perfect. The walls are repainted. Two walls are white, one is a light grey and the fourth is the lightest shade of pink. There is the new grey short-shag carpet on the floor that is just like the one she had bought months earlier that had to be replaced due to the water and all of the furniture is put together and in the exact spots where she wanted it.

She then notices something on the windowsill and she goes there to see what it is. They are wooden letters – painted pink – and it doesn't take her any time at all to see that she can use the letters to either spell out Lucy or Holly.

Daryl.

He's obviously waiting for her to pick a name before putting them on the door.

Beth touches them with her fingertips as gently as if they were as fragile as eggs.

"I like him," Maggie said, watching Beth as Beth stared down at the letters.

Beth smiles a little and looks to her older sister. "You just met him," she says with a smile.

"Intuition," Maggie quips. "Don't be difficult," she then adds with her own smile. "He's crazy about you," she then adds quietly as if she's telling a grand secret she doesn't want overheard. "When he found out who we were, he started tripping over himself, helping us with our bags and making sure that we had everything we needed. He was definitely surprised that we knew who he was."

Beth smiles a little at that. She's been talking about Daryl to her family for months now, but she never told Daryl that. He would probably want to know why she would talk about him; as if he's no one who deserves mention.

"He's crazy about you," Maggie then says and Beth's not sure why because she knows that he is, but she feels herself blush nonetheless.

Beth nods. "I'm so in love with him," she says. "I've never been in love before Daryl. I know that now."

Maggie takes a moment to study her. "Are you ever going to tell me?" She asks and Beth doesn't need her to clarify. There is only one thing Maggie could possibly mean right now.

"No," Beth doesn't even hesitate before answering. "Maybe one day, when she's about to go off to college and she asks me. I'll call you and I'll tell you both at the same time."

Maggie doesn't smile; just keeps looking at Beth. "You know you can tell me. I swear, Beth. I won't do anything. You can tell me."

Beth looks at her sister and after a moment, gives her a soft smile. "I know, Maggie. But this is one secret I want to keep to myself."

Maggie sighs softly, but doesn't say anything more about it. "You're not coming home, are you?" She then asks.

Beth feels her eyes widen at that. "What? I am home, Maggie."

"Beth," Maggie then sighs softly again as if she has no patience. "You're clear across the state away from me, daddy, Annette… _home_. This isn't home. It can't be."

Beth is frowning now. "Why can't it be home? I think I've done pretty darn well for myself here in just a few months. Is that why you and mom and daddy came? To take me back?"

She's not surprised; not in the least. She's been anticipating this for months; that when she told her family where she is, they would do her best to make her leave Scott with them. But still, actually hearing it and having her suspicions confirmed is a little jarring.

"You need to be around family," Maggie said, placing a gentle hand on Beth's arm. "You and the baby. And we'd feel so much better if you were a lot closer than you are right now."

"Maggie," Beth says and begins shaking her head. "I can't leave Scott. This is my home now. I have a great place to live and a great job and I want to raise my daughter here."

"Away from her grandparents and aunt?" Maggie is beginning to frown now.

Beth opens her mouth to respond, but she honestly can't think of anything to say.

Is it ideal? Of course not. She would love if all of them – Maggie, daddy and mom, _Daryl_ – could all live in one spot so Beth could live there, too, but it's not just Daryl. It's everyone out in the living room right now who are her friends and care enough about her to throw a surprise baby shower for her and her daughter.

It means more to her than she would ever be able to describe.

But if all of that wasn't a factor, there was still the case of Aiden and Beth may still be in Georgia, but that doesn't mean she has to be anywhere near him.

"Beth," Maggie tries to prompt her to say something.

"Beth!"

They both turn when Eliza runs into the room, brimming with excitement.

"We're going to play a game and we need you!" The girl takes hold of Beth's hand. "We're going to guess how big your belly is and then we're going to measure you to see who's the closest guess and mom says the winner wins a prize!"

Beth laughs a little at that. "What is the game called? How big is the beluga whale?"

Eliza rolls her eyes. "You're not a beluga whale. You're pregnant and you're beautiful and even if you were a beluga whale, beluga whales are so beautiful. Come on!"

Beth admits that she is extremely grateful for the distraction provided by the nine-year-old because this conversation with Maggie, though expected, she's not prepared for at all.

She smiles as Eliza leads her back into the living room and everyone is smiling and laughing and talking and having such a good time and Lori is the one to usher her into the middle of the room where everyone can see her. Beth joins in on the smiling, laughing and talking and her eyes search for Daryl among everyone there. She finds him standing in the kitchen with Hershel and Hershel seems to be talking as Daryl stands there, listening, occasionally nodding his head to whatever her daddy is saying.

But then as if he can feel her looking at him, Daryl lifts his head and finds her almost immediately. She smiles at him, the moment with Maggie in the nursery gone from her mind, and she feels warm and light as she does every other time Daryl looks at her.

She is not leaving Scott. She refuses to.

…

* * *

 **A little bit more of the baby shower in the next chapter.**

 **Thank you very much for reading and please take a moment to review!**


	23. Chapter 22

**I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend. A few have asked about _Not a Bad Thing_ and that story, I love so much and have no plans whatsoever on abandoning it. However, I was starting to get these two stories confused so I decided to focus on this one for the time being and once this one is complete, I will be returning to regularly update that one. I think _Bump_ is going to have somewhere around 26 chapters. **

* * *

…

 **Chapter Twenty-Two.**

Hershel Greene may look like Santa Claus, but Daryl is not going to relax around the man. He may be smiling at Daryl, but snakes seems pretty innocent and harmless just seconds before they strike. Not that Daryl is comparing Hershel Greene to a snake. Daryl's just used to things looking all fine right before everything turns to shit.

He can't remember the last time he felt this nervous. Her family knows of him and he's learned that Beth has talked about him to them, but what she has said, he doesn't know. He just knows that Beth's older sister, Maggie, had given him some sort of smile that makes him think that she knows a lot of secrets that he doesn't know. Her mom, Annette, had actually given him a hug, and Hershel, her dad, has been watching him closely all afternoon.

When Daryl had been in the kitchen, filling his cup with another serving of pink lemonade from the punch bowl, and taking another chicken kabob, he had heard someone come in behind him and when he looked, he wasn't necessarily surprised to see that it was Hershel.

He steps aside so the man can help himself to food and drinks if he wants, but he, himself, doesn't leave the kitchen. Daryl has never "met the parents" before, but his instincts are telling him that Hershel wants to talk with him and Daryl figures he might as well get it over with. He wonders what Beth has told her family about him. Daryl can't imagine there's anything about him to brag about. He's just a guy who does hard labor and has a blue collar job. He doesn't have a lot of education and he doesn't make a lot of money. His hair is too long and he's probably too old for her and he stands there, knowing that all of these things are probably pretty damn obvious to the older man as Hershel stands there, looking at him.

"Bethy was telling me that this building was quite a mess before you began renovating," Hershel begins.

Daryl nods and reminds himself that it will probably help if he speaks to the man. "Tyreese and Karen did most of the renovatin' on it. I just helped," he responds and Hershel keeps looking at him as if maybe he doesn't completely believe that, but the man moves on.

"It's a beautiful apartment," Hershel comments.

"Thanks," Daryl gives another nod and takes a sip of lemonade. "And Beth's made it a real good place for her and the baby."

"Yes, she has," Hershel says with a slight smile, looking around the kitchen as he does.

Beth has kept it the white color that all of the rooms were painted when she first moved in, but had added color through everything else: her dish-ware and the dishtowels and there is a window above the sink where on the sill, she is growing her own herbs; little bursts of green. Hershel steps closer to the refrigerator to look at the black and white sonogram pictures of Dot that Beth has hanging there and the man smiles as he looks over his granddaughter.

"And you live across the hall?" Hershel looks back to Daryl.

"I manage this buildin' and a couple others that Tyreese and Karen own," Daryl answers.

He was arrested once. Not officially arrested, he supposes, but brought into the station once for questioning; the police wanting to know if he knew where his brother had been on a particular day around a particular time and if Daryl had been with him.

Daryl feels like he's being interrogated all over again.

He supposes he can't really blame the man though. Beth had left – ran away – months ago, pregnant and refusing to tell her family where she's been and now, they're here and she's about to give birth and she has friends and a job and… _him_ and they don't know anything about any of it. They're just trying to learn about the life their daughter has for herself now.

Feeling a familiar warmth on the back of his neck, he turns his head and looks into the living room and sure enough, Beth is standing there amongst everyone else at the shower that afternoon, and she's looking at him. And once she sees him looking at her, too, she smiles happily at him. Daryl tries to get himself to smile in return, but he's more than aware of Hershel watching him and it's hard to smile when he's under such scrutiny.

There is a lot of talking and laughing and Lori is holding a pad of paper and a pen. They're getting ready to play a game – guess how big Beth is around – and all seem excited for it.

"Maggie's my oldest from my first wife. Joanna died years ago, when Maggie was still a little girl, and I admit that that wasn't the best time in my life. I'm sorry to say that Maggie grew up a lot faster than a little girl should have, dealing with her daddy, who was a no-good drunk."

Daryl looks away from the living room to look back to the older man. He knows he's not expected to say anything to all that Hershel is saying. So Daryl just stands there and looks at him and listens. He also wonders why Hershel is spilling all of this to him. Who is he? He's just the guy who lives across the hall from his daughter. Is that all who Beth says he is?

"And Shawn is Annette's son from her first marriage. Terrible man who used to beat on her and the boy," Hershel continues and Daryl makes sure he keeps his face blank at that, but he wonders if Beth's older brother has the same back as he does. "When Annette and I got married, we made sure that Maggie and Shawn finally had the kind of childhood they deserved.

"Beth is mine and Annette's child and ever since the day she was born, we all knew she was different. She was never going to have any of the childhood that her brother or sister had," Hershel says, making sure his eyes stay on Daryl and doesn't look anywhere else, even as laughter and playful jabs rise from the living room. "That girl has been surrounded with love for her entire life. Everyone who meets Beth can't help, but fall in love with her."

Daryl remains quiet, not arguing with that.

He loves that girl in the living room more than he's ever loved anyone or anything before and Hershel's right. Girl's pretty much the definition of love, in Daryl's opinion. Beth is good, warm and bright – both inside and out – and when she meets a person, she makes them feel like they're the most important person in the world. She's sure as hell done that with him and when she tells him that she loves him, Daryl feels like there's nothing in this world that he can't do.

And he may not be the smartest guy in the world, but he can figure out what Hershel's getting at. The chicken kabob rests in his stomach like a stone and he looks down at the empty plastic cup in his hand for a moment. He's not surprised. He even might say that he gets it. Beth's special and important and her family doesn't want her living clear across the state away from them – especially when she's ready to have her baby.

"And with a guess of 38.5 cm, the winner is…" Lori announces. "Rosita!"

"Yay!" Rosita bounces up from the couch, clapping, and everyone claps and laughs as Rosita throws her arms around Beth excitedly and Beth laughs, hugging her.

"You cheated!" Martinez calls out, good-naturedly, to his cousin.

"There is absolutely no way that a person can cheat at this," Rosita informs him as Michonne hands her the pink Yankee Candle that she has won.

Daryl had been leaning back against the counter and he pushes himself off of it now, standing up straight, and he tosses the plastic cup into the trashcan.

"It was nice to meet you," he says with a slight head nod towards Hershel.

"It was nice to meet you, too, son. You seem like a really good man," Hershel says, sticking out his hand, and Daryl shakes it, doing his best not to smirk at Hershel's compliment.

Everyone is distracted, getting ready to play another game, and no one except for Hershel notices as Daryl heads towards the front door. Before leaving though, Daryl can't help, but look back to Beth, in the living room, letting the kids feel her stomach as Dot moves around. She's smiling and laughing and looks like she's damn-near glowing and what the hell did Daryl really think was going to happen? That she'd have her daughter and she'd just let Daryl into hers and the baby's life like he belongs there with them? The girl has a family already and plenty of other people who love her and she may say otherwise, but the truth is, she doesn't need him. She always said that she has relied on him too much ever since moving here, but Daryl never saw it like that.

He's always considered that he was just lending a helping hand to the strongest woman that he's ever met.

He crosses the hall, leaving the baby shower behind, and heads back into this own apartment. He has left the patio sliding door open a crack for Lemon to let himself in and out during the day and Daryl figures the cat has gone out since he's not immediately at Daryl's legs, rubbing himself against his ankles.

With a sigh, he goes to the refrigerator and gets himself a can of beer before going into the living room and collapsing on the couch. This morning, when he has been letting Michonne and Lori into Beth's apartment so they could start setting up, Beth's family had shown up and Daryl should have known right then and there that that was the end. How could it be anything, _but_ the end between him and Beth? She loves him and he doesn't doubt that, but he's just a guy she's known for a few months and they're her family and Daryl can't imagine anyone choosing him when it comes to their family.

She'll move back home with them and Daryl will never see her again and someone else will rent out Beth's apartment and life will go on and that will be that.

It's his own damn fault for letting himself fall in love with that girl. _Both_ of those girls.

He has just snapped open the tab and taken his first sip when someone knocks on his door.

Daryl pulls himself off the couch and opens the door, not at all surprised to see that it's Beth. She is smiling at him, but he can see the slight pull between her eyebrows, worried.

"Why'd you leave?" She asks.

He shrugs. "Too many people," he says and that's not a lie. The apartments here aren't miniscule, but still, too many people crammed into any room will make it feel small. "And 've been workin' so much lately, 'm feelin' beat."

Beth looks at him for a moment as if she's trying to decide if his explanation is bullshit or not and she gives his hand a light squeeze. "Can I come in?" She asks.

"'s your baby shower, Beth. Not mine. You should get back in there," he says.

"Please? Just for a minute?"

She doesn't even have to ask him in the first place if she can come in or not. Daryl takes a step back and she gives him a small smile, stepping over the threshold.

"Please don't pull away from me," Beth says before Daryl can even close the door again.

Daryl stares at her and says nothing and her smile is gone and it looks like she's going to cry; her hand still holding his and her other hand coming to hold onto his hand, too, practically clutching it.

"Please, Daryl. I need you," she says, looking up to him.

Daryl swallows as he looks down at her. Damn, he had really meant what he had told Rick. He had wanted to marry this girl and he didn't even know the first thing about marriage or really what that would mean, but with Beth, he had wanted to give it a shot because girls like Beth are the sorts of girls that guys married and build an entire life with.

But how the hell had he thought that that would ever work?

"Come back with me. I'm going to open presents next," she says as she grips his hand.

"Beth," he says her name, but he stops because he can't think of anything to say after that and Beth shakes her head slightly and her eyes flood with tears.

"I love my family, but they can't make me go anywhere," she tells him. "I'm an adult and I make my own choices and I choose to stay here in Scott, with _you_."

Daryl finds himself shaking his own head before he even really realizes it. "Beth," he says her name again. "They're your family and you're crazy if you think they're just gonna leave this place without you. You and me… 's just not gonna work."

"Don't say that," she says and more tears are building, ready to spill over at any second.

He swallows again. "I do love you, Beth, but we were both stupid to think that this would be anythin' more."

She stares at him for another moment and Daryl stands still, letting her look her full. He makes sure his face is blank; making sure that she knows that he means this.

He's sure that Hershel Greene is a nice man and he probably didn't mean to show Daryl the door, but that's what he did and that's what has happened and Daryl can see it for himself.

This is the way it has to be. It's the best thing for her and the baby – even if she refuses to see it right now. He just needed someone on the outside to make him open his eyes to it. These past few months, with Beth in them, they have honestly been the best months of his life, but he should be used to things not working out for him. After all, his last name is still Dixon and not even someone like Beth can change that.

"I don't want you to think that I don't love you, Beth, 'cause I do-"

"Sure," Beth cuts him off and her hands slip from his, hanging limply at her sides. "You love me so much that you're just willing to step back the _second_ my daddy says anything to you."

"What do you want from me?" Daryl frowns, not able to help himself.

He's letting her go because it's the best thing for her and her baby. Her family loves her and wants her home. They'll be able to give her anything and everything she could ever want. She'll see it eventually. She won't be blind to the truth forever.

He's not going to show her that he feels like he's ready to throw up. Hopefully, he can manage to not do that until after she returns to her baby shower.

He's grateful that he hadn't bought a ring yet.

"Nothing," Beth says with a shake of her head, the first of the tears sliding down her cheeks. "Absolutely nothing."

Daryl stands there, not able to say anything or do anything as Beth leaves the apartment, wiping at her cheeks as she heads back across the hall, going into her own apartment, the door closing behind her. And he doesn't mean to, but when he closes his own door behind her, he does it with a slam.

…

He's not sure how Beth swung it, but Maggie and Hershel leave Scott a couple days after the baby shower and Annette remains. Daryl just assumed that they would insist on Beth leaving with them right away, and he wonders what she said to them to convince them to do otherwise. It's not like he can just ask her though. That would mean they'd have to be speaking with one another.

He hasn't seen her in days. He sees Annette often – she using Beth's car to run errands – but he doesn't see Beth. He assumes that she's in her apartment, taking it easy before Dot gets here. He wonders how she's feeling or if she needs anything – even with her mom there – and he wonders how close she's getting to giving birth.

He wonders if he'll even know that the baby is born unless he hears her crying from across the hall.

He's having a hell of a time sleeping and more than once, he finds himself lying in bed, imagining that Beth is sleeping in bed next to him. Or at least she's trying to sleep. Dot is moving all over inside of her at all hours of the night and Beth tells her to stop and let her rest and Daryl imagines rubbing her stomach, trying to calm the baby down so her mama can sleep at least for a little bit.

Daryl replays the afternoon of the baby shower over and over again in his head for days after. He wonders if he had completely misinterpreted what Hershel had been saying to him and if it was just what he _thought_ Hershel was saying to him. Maybe Hershel had actually been giving Daryl the thumbs up and Daryl just could never believe that he would actually get a dad's approval so he had told himself one thing while it had been the complete opposite of the truth.

He loves her and he wonders if she still loves him or if in the past few days, she has managed to completely erase all feelings she had had for him from her mind.

Daryl doesn't take it back. He loves her, but they were being stupid or just blind, thinking that this could ever actually work between them; blind or stupid, thinking that she'll actually stay in Scott once her family knows where she is. Annette and Beth are probably just staying put for now until Dot's born and then after that, off they'll go.

But God… _damn it_ , he had wanted it all with her. He really did. Just the images he would have of her and him and the baby… and the thing is, it didn't seem that far-fetched. He loved – _loves_ – her and she loved (loves?) him and he had never known things to be easy for him in life, but with Beth, that's exactly how it had been. Everything since the first time they kissed, it had been easy. He felt comfortable with her and he really could imagine having some kind of life with her.

"Daryl!" Karen calls down the basement stairs and Daryl stops his hammering to come to the bottom of the steps, pulling his facemask down, looking up at her. "Visitor," she then says with a smile before disappearing again, returning to her book of paint chips.

For half a second, as he climbs the steps onto the main floor of the little bungalow that they are now working on as their next project, Daryl thinks that maybe it's Beth, but it's a stupid thought and he shakes it out of his head as soon as it appears.

He heads towards the front door and there, on the front porch, he sees that it's Rick instead.

"Hey," Daryl grunts. "Michonne send you?" He asks, only half-kidding around, and Rick gives a little smile and nods his head.

"She's worried about you," Rick tells him. "We _all_ are, man."

Daryl has nothing to say to that. He reaches into the back pocket of his jeans and pulls out his lighter and pack of cigarettes. He plops himself down on the top step and Rick sits down next to him. Daryl lights one and then offers the pack and lighter to Rick, who takes one out for himself and lights it before setting both down on the porch between them.

"I'm sure whatever happened between you two-" Rick begins.

"No," Daryl doesn't let him say another word. "It can't be fixed." He takes a drag and then watches the stream of smoke he exhales between his lips. "There's nothin' to fix."

They're both quiet after that, smoking their cigarettes and watching grey storm clouds roll in from the east. The wind is starting to pick up, the closer they get. It smells like rain and from the looks of it, it's going to be a hell of a storm.

"It about your lunch break?" Rick asks once they've both stubbed their cigarette butts out.

Daryl nods and doesn't give a verbal answer.

"You have a taste for anything? I'm buying," Rick then adds, throwing his friend a smile.

Daryl smirks. "You mean the county's payin'?" Daryl ribs back.

"I do not take advantage of my expense account and don't let anyone hear you say anything otherwise. I got an election in two years." Rick stands up and stretches his arms back, letting out a grunt as his back crack. "Anything special you want for lunch?" He asks again.

Daryl stands up, too, and shakes his head. "No. Just not Denny's."

…

* * *

 **Thank you so much for reading and please take a moment to leave a review!**


	24. Chapter 23

**Thank you for your patience. Work has been crazy, I'm fighting bronchitis, and I really wanted to get this chapter out because next chapter, we meet Dot and I can't wait for everyone to meet her!**

* * *

…

 **Chapter Twenty-Three.**

Beth finds herself in the one spot she had promised to herself to never be in again; lying on her bed, crying over a man.

She doesn't know how long she cries over Daryl and she certainly loses count of how many times she tells herself to stop. No man, not even Daryl, is worth her crying so much. She's going to be a mother. She's already a mother and her baby girl will be here anytime now. She has bigger things to worry and think about than Daryl Dixon and how men look at her and only see a woman whose heart they can break. No man cares about her. They say they do. They say they love her. They say they want to be with her and they promise her the world. She falls in love with them right back and think that they can really have something.

And then, she finds out that they're married and every word out of their mouth has been a complete and utter lie. Or they tell her that they love her, but they just can't be with her because of her family and in their minds, they convince themselves that they know what's better for her than she does.

Beth is still crying, just thinking about it all, but at the same time, she also feels furious. How _dare_ any of these men look at her and think that they can treat her like this; treat her like she's absolutely nothing. She's Beth Greene, darn it, and she is pretty darn amazing.

She has been having contractions all day and she told her mom the second she woke up and could feel the passing pain low in her belly. Annette counted how long it was between each one and she said that they had plenty of time. So all day, Beth has been sitting on the couch, trying to relax, making sure over and over again that her bag for the doctor's office is packed and she'll have everything when she and her mom finally do go to Dr. Douglas. Annette has already called the man to tell him that Beth is definitely in labor, but he says the same thing that Annette has said. The contractions are too far apart still and there would be no point for her to get over there yet. Apparently, they had plenty of time.

Annette moves around the apartment, making sure that everything is in order for when Lucy or Holly comes home in just a couple of days. Home. Beth is bringing her home. Finally. She honestly feels as if she has been pregnant forever and she's constantly uncomfortable and she will be so happy to have her baby girl, but she'll also be very happy to finally have her body back to herself.

Sitting on the couch, waiting for her contractions to get closer together and for her water to break, Beth tries to focus on her baby. In a few hours – hopefully, just a few hours - her daughter will be here and she will finally be able to hold her in her arms. All of these months, aching for her and she is going to be here.

And she definitely _does not_ think about the man across the hall.

It had taken a bit of convincing, but finally, Maggie admitted that she to get back home and get back to work and Hershel knew that he had to get back to the farm. Maggie had been the only one who approached the subject more than once of Beth coming back with them. Annette had said that it wouldn't be wise and safe to have Beth leave so far into her pregnancy – especially when her doctor was here in Scott – and Hershel hadn't said anything about the matter at all.

The apartment building has a laundry room on the first floor – at the end of the hall – and Annette comes in with a basket in her arms, having finally washed the last of the onesies and spit rags that Beth had received as gifts from the baby shower.

"Mom?" Beth asks, still from the couch. "I'm not leaving Scott," she cuts right to it.

She doesn't understand why Daryl is so certain that she is going to leave and there's no point in being together anymore. She doesn't understand why he doesn't see that this is her home. She misses her family, of course, and the farm, but over the past few months, she has made this her home and it will be where she raises her daughter and she's just not leaving.

Annette doesn't pause as she goes into the nursery and returns a moment later.

"Mom," Beth says again.

"I heard you, Bethy," Annette says. "And I'm not expecting you to."

Beth stares at her and doesn't say a word. Annette gives her a gentle smile and comes to sit down next to Beth on the couch. Beth winces a little at another contraction and Annette takes her hand, Beth immediately clasps it – not only because of the contractions, but because it is her mom and Beth wonders how obvious it is just how terrified she is.

"There you go," Annette gives her a gentle smile as it passes and her eyes glance to the clock to take note of the time so they can keep time from this contraction to her next. "Now, why would you say you're not leaving Scott?" She asks.

"Because I'm not. This is my home. I don't know what you, daddy and Maggie think-"

"Your sister is her own person with her own mind and what she says is not what your daddy and me necessarily think as well," Annette says. Beth opens her mouth to speak, but Annette continues as if she doesn't see it. "When you finally told us where you have been all these months, we _did_ talk about it during the drive on how we can get you home, but then we saw where you've been and this apartment and met your friends, who just love you so much, and Daryl… your daddy and me knew we couldn't just drag you back with us and leave this all behind."

Beth has no idea what to say because those are the exact same things that she has been wanting to say, but her mom beat her to it.

"Do I wish you and this baby were going to be closer? You bet your butt," Annette continues and Beth smiles at that. "And don't think your daddy and me aren't going to be constantly visiting. But this place has been so good for you and you've made quite a life for yourself in just a short amount of time. I don't know what happened back at home and I'm not going to make you tell me until you're ready, but here, you are so much happier than you were during those last few weeks, living at home."

For a passing second, Beth is so tempted to tell her about Aiden and how stupid and blind she had been to him and how she had stupidly thought that she loved him and he loved her – until she moved to Scott and met Daryl and her heart hasn't been the same since.

How can one man make her want to scream at him, burst into tears, and throw her arms around him and never let him go all at the same time?

"The father…" Annette pauses and swallows and seems to be thinking over her words, wanting to choose them carefully.

"I know who the father is," Beth guesses. "I wish I didn't, but I do."

Annette closes her eyes for a moment and shakes her head before looking to her again. "I didn't doubt that you did. I just… I wasn't sure if the something you didn't want to tell me was that."

Beth squeezes her hand before she can say anything as another contraction begins.

"Still too far apart," Annette says after a moment.

Beth lets out a heavy sigh. "Come on, Dot. What are you waiting for?" Beth asks the bump.

Annette smiles. "With Shawn, I swear that he had grabbed hold of me from the inside and refused to come out. And with you, I swear, you just fell right out."

Beth smiles at that, too. "I'm so excited and so, so terrified."

Annette leans in at that and kisses her on the head. "Welcome to motherhood."

…

Beth's water finally breaks around the same time the grey clouds that have been hanging low in the sky burst and rain starts pouring. It's around five and Beth is more than ready to get to Dr. Douglas and get Dot out of her. There is only one problem though.

Annette can't drive in the rain.

It had started a few years ago and her doctor had told her that she couldn't drive at night anymore. And then it became that she couldn't drive in bad weather. Her eyes just aren't as sharp as they used to be – though Annette argues about that, but with her daughter and granddaughter, she isn't going to be stubborn about it now.

"I'm going to go and see if Daryl can drive us," she says, opening the door.

"Mom, no!" Beth grabs her hand to stop her as she stands nearby, holding her bag in one hand and one hand on her lower back, more than ready to go. "You can't ask him."

Annette simply shakes her head. "I most certainly can ask him," she says, leaving.

Beth knows her mom is not an idiot or blind and Beth knows that her mom knows that Beth has been crying over Daryl for the past few days, but getting Beth to Dr. Douglas is far more important right now and Beth (reluctantly) agrees though she'd be far happier going upstairs and seeing if someone else, anyone else, could drive her.

It seems like seconds since Annette has left, Daryl is hurrying in.

"You okay?" Daryl asks, coming right up to her and for a second, Beth forgets how to breathe. She has the strong urge to slap him and kiss him all at the same time. "Come on. Le's get you to the car."

"Wait!" Annette exclaims before Daryl can start to guide her out.

Both Beth and Daryl turn and Annette is taking the raincoat from the little hall closet and she helps Beth put it on. She then flips the hood on over Beth's head.

"Alright, now we can go," Annette says, coming to the other side of Beth and taking the overnight bag into her hand, she then grabs Beth's hand with her other. "You ready?"

"Do I have a choice?" Beth asks and then she almost screams at the contraction ripping through her now. She clenches her teeth and grips both Annette and Daryl's hands in hers.

"It ain't that far," Daryl says. "Can you walk? I can carry you."

Beth gives Daryl a skeptical look. "I'm a whale, Daryl. You can _not_ carry me."

Daryl and Annette look at one another and then Daryl stoops down and Beth gasps as Daryl hoists her up in her arms.

"Daryl, no!" She exclaims even as her arms go around his shoulders, holding on for dear life, because she expects to be dropped at any second. There's no way that he can hold her, let alone carry her to the car.

Daryl ignores her though and carries her from the apartment. Annette closes and locks the door and then hurries ahead of them so she can open the doors for Daryl as he carries her outside. The rain is falling heavy and fast and it whips at them and she knows that Daryl is trying to hurry, but he's also being as cautious as possible.

Instead of the truck, he heads towards her car and once again, Annette hurries past them so she can unlock it. At the car, she holds the door open and Beth is trying to remind to breathe, but the contractions are ripping through her and she normally doesn't curse, but son of a bitch. Daryl gently sets her down on her feet and between him and her mom, they help her get down in the seat and then both hurry to get in the car.

"How you doin'?" Daryl asks as he starts the engine.

Beth's clenching both her eyes shut and her teeth together. "Oh, just wonderful."

"Sorry. 's was a stupid question," he says as he pulls from the parking lot into the street, turning the windshield wipers on at top speed.

Beth's eyes open and she looks at him. She doesn't care that her mom's in the backseat. She looks at the man sitting beside her and she has missed him so much and she loves him so much and she reaches an arm out, curling her fingers around his forearm. He doesn't look at her, not wanting to take his eyes off the road.

"You jus' keep holdin' onto me, Beth," Daryl says. "We'll be there in no time."

Beth nods and then her grip on his arm tightens where she has another contraction. She wants to be mad at him, but she's having a hard time with that right now when he's exactly where she needs him to be in this exact moment.

Right at her side.

…

In the delivery room, they get her changed into a gown and then Dr. Douglas checks her progress as Annette stands at her bedside, holding her hand.

"Soon. Very soon." Dr. Douglas informs her, patting her knee.

He then steps out to call his nurse so she get over here and help with the delivery and Annette leans in, kissing her head, her hair already a bit sweaty.

"I'm going to go call your daddy and Maggie. Do you need anything?" She asks.

"For this to be over," Beth moans.

Annette just smiles again and kisses her head again before leaving. Beth sits in the bed, hoping that soon in doctor speak means within the hour because she is so ready for her daughter to get out of her.

Over the past few months, reading books and during the parenting classes, she has done her best to not think about the labor. The mere idea of it has completely terrified her to the point of her waking up in tears from the dreams she has had about it. And now, here she is. She had gone back and forth on getting an epidural and she knows that she will probably regret the decision – she already kind of does – but her mom had given birth without drugs and Beth wants to be able to do that, too.

Her fingers grasp the sides of the bed with another contraction so hard, she almost loses feeling, and she clenches her eyes shut, trying to remember those stupid breathing exercises though she can't really believe that they'll help her right now.

Her eyes open when she feels someone touching her hand and she sees that it's Daryl, now standing next to her bed. Without a word, she releases the bed and grips his hand instead. He stands still and lets her grip and she knows that she's squeezing the blood out of it, but the man's face doesn't even twitch.

"How much of that was 'cause of Dot and how much of that was to give me some hurt?" Daryl asks with a little smirk once her grip lessens.

"Do you want to switch places right now? I'd be more than happy to give you these contractions," she can't help, but snap, and Daryl holds his hands up as if surrender. She lets out a breath and shakes her head. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean that."

"You got every reason in the world to snap at me, Beth," he replies quietly. "I don't mean to be botherin' you. Your ma asked me to come in and stay with you while she's callin' people. I'll be gettin' out of your hair real soon," he promised.

Beth's hand flew to his and snatched it. "Don't you dare go anywhere," she says, giving him – what she hopes – a fierce look. "I need you, Daryl. Right here."

Daryl stares at her for a minute, not speaking, and she has absolutely no idea what he's thinking. But that's not a surprise to her. She has never been able to read him. She had hoped, that more time spent together, she'd become quite the expert.

She's still hoping for that.

"Look, Beth," he steps closer to the bed, and he turns his hand so their fingers can interlace together. He looks downwards for a moment as if he's not able to look at her, but then, he looks at her so suddenly, Beth freezes because he's looking at her like he always looks at her. As if there's no one more interesting in this world than her and he can't look enough. "Your dad freaked me out," he then says.

"No shit," she snorts and she misses his smile because she's gripping his hand again.

Now she knows why moms can always hold the pain of labor over the children for the rest of their lives. And Dot can bet on her doing the same thing to her once she gets out here.

In the back of her mind, Beth can hear breathing and she opens her eyes to see him breathing with her, doing the same exercises she is.

Her heart stops.

"What are you doing?" She asks, almost whispering.

Daryl shrugs and she expects him to be embarrassed, but not even his ears turn red. "I got a DVD from the library," is all he says.

And that's really all Beth needs him to say.

"You are such a moron, Daryl Dixon," she says, but she's nearly smiling as she starts to cry and these tears have nothing to do with the pain she is going through right now.

"But you still love me?" He then asks, almost unsurely.

"No, Daryl," she rolls her eyes. "I can't stand you. That's why I'm going to want you and my mom both with me when I deliver. If you can handle it. I've seen you handle pressure."

"I ain't leavin' your side, Beth," he says, staring into her eyes and no where else.

"We'll see," Beth says. "When Dot is crying every two hours or when she's starting to teeth. We'll see."

"Hey," he says, his voice a little hard now. "I ain't Aiden."

"Then _stop_ acting like him!" Beth snaps. "Here's your chance, Daryl. Your final chance. You can leave right now and that will be it. You stay far away. I won't let you come back. Me and Dot won't have anything to do with you and I'll pretend you don't exist and Dot won't even know who you are. Or-" Another contraction and she grips his hand and Daryl lets her grip away. "Or," she begins again once she gets her breath back. "Or you stay," she ends simply.

Daryl doesn't seem to even think about it for a second.

He simply steps as close to the bed as he can and when Beth has another contraction, he holds her hand between both of his.

"If you ever leave again…" she trails off, hoping that that's enough as a threat because she honestly can't think of anything right now except for the pain and hopefully, she's a scary woman while in the middle of labor.

Daryl leans down and brushing sweaty hair back from her face, he kisses her temple. "I ain't Aiden and I'm not gonna do anythin' again that makes you think I am. Even if I have to keep you and Dot prisoners in your apartment to keep you from ever leavin'."

"You're such an idiot. My mom and daddy know I'm not going anywhere," she informs him.

Okay, seriously. It feels like Dot is coming right this second. Where the hell is Dr. Douglas?

"Daddy was probably just telling you how special I am to make sure that you knew it without a doubt," she continues.

"You're a lil' sure of yourself," Daryl says with a light tease in his tone and she manages to give him a smile before she's squeezing the blood from his hand again. Daryl kisses her temple again. "Come on, mama," he smirks a little. "I wanna meet this girl who's been kickin' up a storm against your ribs for the past few months."

Beth laughs and rolls her eyes and gives him a push in the chest, but she's smiling and her eyes are flooding with tears, too.

She is more than ready to meet this girl, too.

"I love you, Beth. A hell of a lot."

The tears are streaming down her cheeks and this time, she really can't tell if it's his words or the contractions, but she nods rapidly. "I love you, too. Can you do me a favor?"

"Anythin'."

"Can you go get Dr. Douglas? I feel like I'm going to have this baby and he's going to miss it."

Daryl smiles this time. Not smirk, but actually smile. He leans in and kisses her head.

"You hold her in until we all get in here again," Daryl says, giving her hand a squeeze before reluctantly pulling away from her grip.

"No promises on that. She's a Greene. She's going to do whatever she feels is right," Beth says, feeling out of breath again and she gets the urge that she just wants to push, but she knows she can't. She's not even fully dilated yet.

"Thank God for that," she hears Daryl say and Beth smiles to herself.

Once it's just her in the room again, Beth's hands go to her stomach. "Fine. I promise I won't hold the pain of labor over your head for the rest of my life if you promise to go easy on me tonight. Please, Dot. I'm terrified right now."

Of more things than one.

…

* * *

 **Thank you very much for reading and please take a moment to leave a review!**


	25. Chapter 24

**Two more chapters to go!**

* * *

…

 **Chapter Twenty-Four.**

He'll _never_ tell Beth this for as long as they live, but labor is pretty disgusting; to put it lightly. But it's also amazing because past all of the blood and screaming, once that's all done and Beth just about damn near breaks his hand and his ear drum, there's a baby. A live baby who's covered in blood and slime and she's screaming her head off and Daryl just stares at her because just a second ago, she was inside of Beth and now she's out here.

Getting her out here might have been disgusting, but it's also the most amazing thing he's ever been able to witness. For these past few months, Daryl has felt this little thing kick from inside Beth, but now she's out here, where they can all see her, screaming like she wants nothing more than to be put back in.

"She's perfect, Beth," Dr. Douglas tells them all and from behind the face mask he is wearing, he is grinning widely, holding up the bloody, screaming baby for them all to see.

Beth, who had been crying just seconds earlier from the immense pain of pushing this baby out, now bursts into tears from pure happiness as she collapses into exhaustion.

Daryl, standing at her bedside, can't do anything except stare at this baby. This bloody, screaming mess of a baby and he knows he's never seen anything more perfect. For a second, he thinks Dr. Douglas will ask him to cut the umbilical cord and it is a second of panic because Daryl has no right to cut that cord and he doesn't know what he'll say if he's asked, but thankfully. Dr. Douglas cuts the cord himself and he stands up, passing the baby girl into Beth's arms for those first few seconds for that instant connection. The baby is still crying and Beth is crying and tears are streaming down Annette's face and Daryl feels his own eyes get a little wet as he looks at Beth holding her daughter.

"What does she look like, Beth?" Annette asks her.

Beth looks down at the screaming, bloody baby as if she's the most beautiful thing she has ever seen and Daryl thinks that she is. Beth can't stop crying and smiling and she can't look away from the baby on her chest.

"Lucy."

The patient room in Dr. Douglas's office is in the front of the house with the large bay window, the bed in front of it, and Beth is currently sound asleep. Lucy is with Dr. Douglas and the nurse, getting completely cleaned up and checked out, and Annette had gone to go get them all some breakfast. So it's just Daryl left, sitting in a chair next to Beth's bed, flipping through a random magazine he took from the waiting room.

The rain has passed and the sun is just beginning to rise fully in the east, light pouring into the room, casting over Beth as she sleeps. Girl deserves all the sleep in the world considering what she just did that night. Pushing a watermelon through a Pringle's can. Daryl knows that he sure as hell couldn't do what she did last night.

He smirks a little to himself, turning a page in the magazine.

"What?"

His eyes fly up to see Beth lying on her side, facing him, a tired smile across her face.

"Hey," Daryl talks quietly and tossing the magazine aside and leans forward in the chair. "How you feelin'?" He asks and then cringes immediately afterwards and Beth laughs softly.

"Have never felt better," she answers, smiling, and Daryl smirks. "What were you thinking just now?"

He shakes his head a little. "Nothin'. Jus' how I've been huntin' and guttin' animals since I was just a kid and that's nothin' to what I saw last night."

She laughs softly at that and then holds her hand out. He doesn't hesitate in taking it.

"Where's my mom?" Beth asks.

"She went to go get us some breakfast, but she was goin' to Magnolia's and I'm pretty sure everyone knows Lucy is here now so everyone 'll be talkin' to her for a while."

And just at the mention of her daughter, Beth's smile brightens instantly.

"Do you need anythin'?" Daryl asks, more than ready to leap to his feet and go and get anything that she says right now. But she shakes her head and Daryl remains sitting next to her, holding her hand, not really wanting to let go.

He knows her dad and sister will be here anytime now and with Annette gone for the moment, Daryl is going to enjoy that it's just the two of them right now.

"You're amazin'," he feels the need to tell her in a quiet voice.

Beth blushes a little at that. "Plenty of women have done this before me." She looks at him for a moment and she rubs her thumb along his skin. "Thank you for staying with me."

Daryl holds her hand a little tighter and he wants to tell her that she's amazing. The most amazing, strongest woman he's ever met and he's already told her that, but he feels like he needs to tell her again. And again.

"Thanks for askin' me to stay," he says, hoping that it's enough; knowing that it probably never will be. Beth just gives him a smile and a gentle squeeze of his hand.

"Well, I couldn't very well break my mom's hand," she teases and he smirks.

The door to the room opens and both Beth and Daryl turn their heads, seeing the nurse walk in, carrying Lucy in her arms. Beth gasps and begins to push herself up, Daryl smiling and getting to his feet to help her. He adjusts the pillows behind her and Beth settles against them and Dr. Douglas's nurse is smiling as she comes to the other side of the bed.

"Here she is," the nurse smiles and Beth's arms are instantly out, taking Lucy from her.

"Hi, baby girl," Beth smiles down at the baby, wrapped in a pink blanket with a pink hat on her head and little mittens on her hands, and Daryl sees Beth's eyes water over with tears. Lucy's eyes are closed and Beth brushes a finger down her cheek. Beth then looks up at Daryl and she smiles. "Isn't she perfect?" She asks.

"Yeah," Daryl nods, staring down at Lucy, and there's no other answer for him to give.

…

Annette comes back with breakfast for them and coffee for her and Daryl and sure enough, pretty much everyone in Scott knows that Beth gave birth the night before.

"Goodness," Annette says as Daryl stands up so she could sit down. "I thought back home was a small town with everyone knowing everything about you, but Scott is something else," she says as she hands Daryl one of the paper cups of coffee. "I kept it black for you, sweetie. I forgot to ask how you take it before I went."

"Black's perfect. Thanks, Annette," Daryl says with a slight head nod and he watches Beth as she stares down at Lucy and he takes his first sip of coffee. She can't stop staring at her and Daryl can't exactly blame her. The whole thing is so damn amazing, in Daryl's opinion.

"And your sister called. She and your daddy are very close to getting here," Annette continues to Beth. "They got the same awful storm we did last night and Hershel didn't want them to drive through it, wanting to get to us in one piece. And then, this morning, he's been yelling at Maggie because she's driving like a crazy person to get them here."

Beth lets out a little laugh at that as she gently adjusts the hat on Lucy's head. "That sounds like Maggie," she agrees.

She then lifts her eyes and looks to Daryl and Daryl's surprised that she's looking at him because honestly, he just expects her to forget that he's still there. Her concentration is on a far more important thing right now.

"She's so calm and quiet right now," Beth says. "Would you want to hold her?"

Daryl hesitates only for a second. "You sure you wan' me holdin' her?" He asks, already setting his coffee cup down.

Beth rolls her eyes and smiles and doesn't say anything. Daryl approaches the bed and staring down at Lucy, Beth gently passes her from her arms into his and Daryl stands there, staring down at her, expecting to feel nervous or scared, but feeling neither of those things.

"She's so lil'," he thinks out loud and Beth and Annette both laugh softly, smiling as they watch. Daryl finds himself rocking her back and forth gently. "Hey lil' Dot," he speaks quietly down to the baby as her eyes remain closed and he's not sure if she's sleeping or just ignoring him. "I'm Daryl and 's nice to meet you."

Lucy scrunches her nose, but does nothing more.

And Daryl has just met this baby, but already, he knows that he'll pretty much do anything that he has to do for her. How is that even possible though? Lucy isn't is. He's crazy about her mom; has got a ring hidden in his underwear drawer to prove it, but still, Lucy isn't his. He had no hand whatsoever in helping with making her.

So why is it that he looks down at this baby and he knows he already loves her.

"You, me and your mama? We're gonna have a lot of fun," Daryl then promises her.

And when he lifts his eyes back to Beth, he sees that both Beth and Annette are smiling and crying at the same time and he figures it's a Greene thing because he's never met anyone who can do the two things at the same time.

He smiles at both women before bringing his eyes back to the baby in his arms.

Lucy takes that very moment to burst into a whaling cry and Daryl finds himself patting her bottom to see if she's wet. She's not and Daryl brings Lucy back to Beth.

"Think she might be hungry," he says and Beth looks both excited and nervous. "Want me to leave?" He offers.

Beth shakes her head as she unties the front of the hospital gown. "You don't have to. You'll probably see it sooner or later," she says and Daryl looks to Annette, but the woman doesn't seem to be bothered at all that a man is about to see her daughter breast-feeding.

Annette stands up and begins to quietly instruct Beth how to get Lucy to take her nipple and Daryl picks up his coffee again, pretending to find the walls very interesting right now. Lucy's quiet now and Daryl glances back to the bed to see that she is suckling from Beth's breast and Beth is watching her with a faint smile, looking completely amazed and stunned that she is actually breastfeeding her daughter.

And it's not like Daryl doesn't know that it's one of the most natural things in the world – a mom breastfeeding her baby – and Daryl tells himself that he's gotten her back and don't be some big damn pervert, but Beth's breast is out. Her breast. It's small, but it's full – of milk for her baby, you fucking pervert, Daryl frowns to himself – and he can't look away from it.

And not to mention that Beth's mom is in the room, probably seeing him staring at her daughter's breast and thinking what a huge fucking pervert he is.

Daryl quickly manages to avert his eyes back to the wall. He wonders why Beth hadn't wanted him to leave the room while she breastfed Lucy.

 _Because it's important to her to make you a part of everything_ , a voice inside him answers.

Daryl doesn't know if that's the real answer, but it sounds good to him.

"She'll know when she's had enough," Annette is saying. "Yes, just like that. Now, gently pull her back and when you burp her, always make sure you have the cloth over your shoulder because trust me. She's a little thing, but she will make a big mess. As you'll soon find out. And then gently… Daryl, maybe you should watch this, too."

Daryl instantly looks away from the wall to look back to Beth. Her hospital gown is covering her right now and she's turning Lucy gently in her arms, beginning to pat and rub her back every so gently. But he notices that Beth isn't looking at Lucy. She's looking at him; right at him and Beth's face is an open book and he has never had any problem reading it.

And right, clear as day on her face, Beth is waiting for him to bolt. She's waiting for him to say something and decide that this is too much for him. After all, they both know – everyone knows – that this isn't his baby so why would he want to be around, learning how to burp her and basically taking responsibility for caring for her?

Beth is doing her best to keep her face blank, but Daryl can read it all and he wants to tell her that he sure as shit is not going anywhere. Not again. He's here to stay and she better just get used to it; especially since that ring in his underwear drawer is going to be hers.

"Yeah," Daryl nods, stepping back towards the bed. "Show me how you're burpin' her."

…

The weekend after Beth and Lucy come home, Tyreese and Karen throw another barbecue in celebration and once again, everyone is invited to see Beth and to meet the new baby.

"So, how's it going? Honestly?" Lori asks as Michonne holds Lucy, smiling down at the baby.

"I'm so tired," Beth confesses, dropping her head onto Lori's shoulders and they share a laugh. "I don't know what I'm going to do when my parents and sister head back home."

"You'll learn," Lori promises her.

"And you'll have help whenever you need it," Michonne adds.

Daryl had been lingering nearby, not wanting to interrupt, but Beth lifts her head from Lori's shoulder to take a sip of her cherry 7-Up and when she sees him nearby, she smiles and he takes that as his cue that it's alright for him to approach.

"Hey," he says to all of them, but his eyes are on Beth.

"Hi," she greets him with the smile; almost shy in a way that he hasn't seen for a few months. Since she moved here.

"What'd you bring me?" Michonne asks him and he slides the plate with the chicken breast sandwiches that he offered to get for Michonne, Lori and Beth onto the table next to her. Michonne looks at the food and then to Daryl, giving him a wide grin. "You're a good man, Daryl Dixon," she says.

"Yeah, yeah," he mutters and then gently takes Lucy from Michonne's arms and holds her in his, looking down at the baby as she sucks on a pacifier, blinking up at him.

She's got her mama's eyes. Big and blue and in the back of his mind, Daryl wonders what color Aiden's eyes are; if Lucy is going to be getting anything from her dad. Can he really call Aiden this baby's dad though? Yeah, he actually had a hand in making her – which is something Daryl will never be able to claim – but anything more than that, he's nothing and Daryl can only hope that he never will be.

Beth, Lori and Michonne all take their chicken sandwiches and Beth stands up, going to stand beside Daryl, smiling down at Lucy.

"She's a calm baby," Daryl comments.

Beth laughs a little. "Around you, she is. Around me, she's possessed."

Daryl smirks a little and keeps looking down to Lucy. With Beth's family here, he's not over at Beth's apartment as much as he would like. He goes to work and he has stopped in after he gets home from work, but mostly, he lets the Greene family have their time with Lucy. In his opinion, they are going to be going home soon and he'll be still here and he'll be able to see Lucy whenever he wants.

Speaking of Beth's family, Maggie comes up to them then and without even looking at Daryl, she picks Lucy up from his arms, looking at her with a big smile.

"There's my favorite niece," Maggie smiles and still, without even giving a look to Daryl, she steps past him to begin talking with Michonne and Lori.

Beth, still with most of her sandwich still in her hand, reaches her other hand down to take Daryl's, giving it a squeeze. "Come on."

Daryl doesn't ask where they're going. He just follows after her as they head across the yard, Beth smiling and exchanging pleasantries with those they pass. Stepping through the back door of the apartment building, they wait a moment for their eyes to adjust from coming in from the bright sunlight into the less bright hallway and they then continue on to Beth's apartment.

She is finished with her sandwich now and she gives him a smile as he closes the door behind them. It seems before it's even closed with a click in its frame, Beth steps right to Daryl and she's standing on her toes and Daryl manages to smile a little, his arms sliding around her hips, before her lips are on his.

Daryl doesn't ask what she's doing. It's pretty obvious what she's doing and all Daryl does is kiss her back, his hand lifting to the back of her head, cupping it and keeping her close to him as his other arm remains wound tight around her waist. Beth's arms slowly move from around his shoulders and her hands go to his head, fingers pushing his hair from his face.

When their lips finally part, she's a bit breathless, and Daryl admits that he is, too.

"Everythin' alrigh'?" He asks her.

"I just really have been wanting to do that," she admits with a smile and he smiles a little, too. With one more look – looking like she might dive back in for another kiss – she then steps back from him and turns to step further into the apartment, Daryl following after her.

With her family here, Hershel is sleeping on the couch, Maggie has made a bed of blankets and pillows on the floor for herself and Annette is sharing Beth's bed with her. Lucy isn't in her crib yet; Beth keeping her in a bassinet next to her side of the bed so she can get to her and answer her cries that much faster. Her family is helping her keep the place as straight as possible, but there are still signs of a baby everywhere – wet bottles and nipples drying in the rack on the counter, a laundry basket of baby clothes that have yet to be folded, flowers Beth had received from townspeople in Scott when she gave birth, some of Lucy's toys scattered all over. He knows that the mess is probably making Beth itch. She's not as big a clean freak as Daryl supposes he is, but he knows that she likes things in order.

Maybe she's learning to live with a little disorganization now that Lucy is here.

Beth goes to collapse on the couch and Daryl sits down next to her.

"Think your sister might hate me," Daryl says before he can stop himself.

"Just like my daddy does?" Beth asks with a tired, teasing smile.

Daryl allows himself to smirk a little. Hershel has already asked him if he could help with getting Beth's car in tip-top shape so Hershel didn't worry about it when he and the others head back home and Beth's here without them, telling Daryl that he knows that he is a very capable man. He has also asked Daryl to check all of the windows in the apartment because apparently, Beth isn't the only one who is worried about Dot's nursery being on the first floor of an apartment building and while crime in Bass County – like any county – does exist, crime in Scott practically doesn't.

Still, Daryl checks because he gets it. Much better to be safe than sorry. Especially when it concerns keeping Lucy and Beth safe.

He admits that he might have initially read Hershel wrong, which actually doesn't happen to him often, but Daryl might think that with Beth's old man.

Beth then sighs. "No, I know. I see it, too." She then shakes her head and sinks a little lower into the couch and she takes Daryl's hand in hers, her fingers beginning to play with his. "She's just being a big sister and big sisters have the tendency to be very annoying and overbearing when they want to be. Which is, unfortunately, most of the time."

"She know about Aiden?" Daryl finds himself asking.

"She knows some of the story. She doesn't know his name and she doesn't know that he's married. But she knows that there was a man and that I thought I was in love with him."

Daryl catches that word immediately. "Thought?"

Beth turns her head and gives him a smile. "Thought," she repeats and then leans in, resting her head on his shoulder. She can't bite back a yawn and she covers her mouth until is passes. "Maggie just wants to keep me safe. She doesn't know if she wants you getting too close to me and Lucy."

Daryl's quiet for a moment, letting that roll around in his mind. "Not really up to her, is it?"

"Of course not," Beth's answer is immediate and Daryl wonders why he feels so relieved; as if he honestly thought Beth would answer another way.

He rests his lips on her head and he can't see her face, but he can hear her smiling.

They both look when there is a knock on the back patio door and they see it is Hershel, holding Lucy in his arms. Daryl gets up so Beth doesn't have to and he goes, sliding the door open for Hershel to come in.

"Sorry, daddy," Beth sits up. "I didn't know I had locked that."

"Sit, sit," he says before she can stand up. "This little one was wanting her mama," he says with a warm smile and twinkling in his eye and Beth smiles, too, holding out her arms, more than happy to take Lucy from him. "You enjoy your quiet. Everyone's having a good time and aren't even missing you," Hershel tells them both on his way out again, giving Daryl a quick clap on the shoulder as he passes.

"Well, aren't we special?" Beth laughs a little.

"Tyreese jus' needed an excuse for a party," Daryl smirks and she laughs again.

He remains standing near the back patio door, watching Beth on the couch as she holds Lucy in her arms, the baby quiet – and Daryl wonders if she had even been fussy or if it was just something he had said, though why he would, Daryl doesn't know – and Beth hums a soft song to her. Daryl watches it all and he feels a tightness in his chest he never experienced before Beth moved to Scott almost a year ago and he saw her for the first time, taking a tour of this apartment and then throwing up in the bathroom.

He had never met anyone like her. And he knows that he never will.

"Where are you going?" Beth asks, lifting her head, seeing Daryl walk towards the front door.

"Gotta get somethin'," he says, stopping with his hand on the doorknob, stopping to look back to her and the baby. "I'll be right back. Don't go anywhere."

"We'll be right here," Beth smiles at him and damn, if he doesn't like the sound of that.

Time to go get something from his underwear drawer.

…

* * *

 **Thank you very much for reading and please take a moment to review!**


	26. Chapter 25

**I love, love, _love_ this chapter. I hope you enjoy!**

* * *

…

 **Chapter Twenty-Five.**

Beth doesn't want to say anything, but Daryl is acting very weird.

He had left for a moment and has now been back, sitting next to her on the couch, for almost five minutes now and hasn't said a single word. He's just looking at her and even though she loves when Daryl looks at her, this is slight disconcerting. Lucy is quiet in her arms, sucking on her pacifier, and she can hear the muffled music coming from the party in the backyard, but inside of her apartment, it's quiet. She looks at Lucy and then to Daryl, waiting for him to speak – figuring that he wants to say _something_ , but he remains.

"Whew!" Beth then lets out a quiet exclamation and a slight laugh as she smells her daughter and less than a second later, Lucy begins crying.

Beth stands up and carries her into the nursery, setting her down on the changing table. Being a mom for a couple of weeks now, it's still amazing to her how such a little, adorable thing can create such a disgusting mess.

She changes Lucy's diaper as quickly as she can, doing her best to not gag. Moms do _not_ gag.

She wipes her and sprinkles her with baby powder and then puts a fresh diaper on her. "There," she says, smiling, proud of herself, and Lucy has stopped crying. "You, baby girl, are no longer Ms. Stinky. Let's keep it like that for a while," Beth teases her, giving her a light tickle on her stomach and Lucy gives her a smile from behind her pacifier.

From the corner of her eye, Beth sees Daryl standing in the doorway, watching her, and she turns her head, giving him a smile. He doesn't smile back and he's back to staring at her and she really has absolutely no idea what he's doing or why he's acting so strange all of a sudden and deep down, she begins to feel a slight clamp of cold.

He's been so good over the past couple of weeks since Lucy was born. He comes over as much as he can to see her and the baby, even though he doesn't want to impose on her family being here as well and he's already helped change her diaper and burp her and he's just been so wonderful. It's been overwhelming, but at the same time, it's been so frightening as well, because she just can't believe that a man – a handsome and successful man like Daryl – would so willingly tie himself to a single mom and a baby who isn't his.

Is that why he is so nervous? Is this the moment when he tells her that he's done?

Stop it, Beth, she swiftly scolds herself. If he didn't run away during the labor and delivery, he won't just leave now when she's changing a diaper. Daryl's not going anywhere and she needs to stop being always afraid that he is. She loves him and he loves her and she needs to just have faith in that and believe that it will last because after Lucy, Daryl is the best thing to ever happen to her and just like she reminds him, she needs to remind herself.

Daryl is nothing like Aiden.

She loves him and believes in him and the most important thing – she trusts him.

A lock of her hair has fallen into her face as she buttons Lucy's onesie back up and before she can tuck it behind her ear herself, she sees Daryl from the corner of her eye moving his hand and he tucks it for her himself.

"Thank you," she gives him a smile and she lifts Lucy back up into her arms. "What's wrong?" She then feels brave enough to ask.

"Why do you think somethin's wrong?" Daryl asks, the slightest frown pulling at the corners of his mouth.

"Well, you're frowning," she then says with the tiniest of smiles.

"Yeah, but that's got nothin' to do with you," he says with a slight shake of his head and his hair falls into his eyes and it's Beth's turn to brush it away for him. Her hand lingers on his face and he's staring into her eyes and Beth can't look away from his.

"Thank you," Beth finds herself saying quietly to him.

"For what?" He asks, still frowning a little, but this time, there's a little crease between his eyebrows and Beth knows that that's because he's a little confused with her words.

"For being here," she clarifies, again with that same small smile.

"Ya know there's nowhere else I'd rather be than here," he says quietly and his ears turn red as if saying such a thing has embarrassed him terribly; even though it's exactly what Beth needs to hear from him.

Daryl lifts his own hand now and there is the slightest hesitation before his hand comes to a rest on her cheek. Beth smiles at him and can't help, but tilt her head into his palm. He brushes his thumb lightly across her skin.

"Tonight, after the party, do you think your folks would mind if you went somewhere real quick?" He asks her then.

Beth feels laughter bubbling in her throat, but she manages to swallow it down. She doesn't want Daryl thinking that she's laughing at him.

"I don't need my parents' permission to go somewhere," she tells him and after a moment of staring at her, Daryl smirks a little and his hand slowly falls from her cheek. "Where are we going?" She then asks as they leave the nursery and head back into the living room.

"'s a surprise," is all he says.

"No hints?" She asks, smiling wider now. A surprise? She has absolutely no idea what it could be. She doesn't need anything and he certainly doesn't need to be giving her a surprise.

"You can wait," he tells her and they head towards the patio door, Daryl reaching past her to slide it open for her first. The music and noise of the party flows over them and Beth stands in the doorway, looking up at him.

"You're being mean to me," she said with a fake pout and he smirks again.

"No, I ain't," he informs her with a shake of his head and Beth can't help, but laugh a little and Daryl smiles. His hand goes to her lower back and together, they go back out to the party for the rest of the afternoon.

…

She has been brimming with excitement and anticipation for the past few hours and she can hardly hide it. She gives Lucy a kiss and then another and another because she hasn't been away from her baby girl ever since she was born and she knows she won't be gone that long at all and she'll be perfectly fine with her mom and dad, but still, she kisses Lucy and hugs her and promises her that she'll be back soon, very aware of the fact that she's acting as if she'll be gone for days, rather than just an hour or so.

At his pickup truck, Daryl opens the passenger side door open for her and Beth practically skips, climbing up.

"You're actin' a lil' crazy," he points out to her.

"Shut up," Beth replies with no bite and she can't stop smiling. "I'm excited," she then states the obvious to him.

"It ain't nothin' to get excited over."

"I'll be the judge of that, Daryl Dixon."

Whatever this is and wherever he's taking her, she knows it's going to be great. She has no doubt and it's simply because it's Daryl. He may have no faith in himself, but lucky for him that she has all of the faith in the world when it comes to him.

Daryl pulls out of the parking lot and drives down one of the residential streets and within a minute, he is pulling into the driveway of a house. Beth leans forward in her seat to look. It's a small house with a covered front porch, a porch swing hanging from the roof, plenty of windows that would allow the sun to pour in and a fence in the back that has been knocked down.

"Are we rescuing another kitten?" Beth asks and Daryl tries to give her a little smile as he gets out. She opens her door, but Daryl is hurrying over to hold it open for her as she slips down, her eyes set on the dark house in front of them.

The roof is stripped of shingles and she knows that he and Tyreese usually start there.

"Ain't nowhere close to bein' finished. We just started on it, but I wanted to show it to you and see what you think of it."

Beth stands in the driveway and looks at it for a moment. She then looks to Daryl with a smile. "Can I see inside?" She asks.

Without a word, he takes her hand and leads her towards it.

She has no idea why Daryl has brought her to this house, but she's not going to assume. She has an idea – a _hope_ – but she is not going to leap to conclusions until Daryl tells her himself. Still though, it feels like she has just swallowed a handful of butterflies and they are all in her stomach now, fluttering everywhere, trying to get out again.

He leads her up the steps of the front porch to the front door. It's dark, but he has a little flashlight with him and he turns it on.

"So this is the front porch," he says. "It ain't that big-"

"It's perfect," Beth feels the need to jump in. "Are you keeping the porch swing?"

"Yeah. Karen's gonna do her thing with it. Refurbish it and repaint it and when me and Ty are finished with the roof, we're gonna get new hooks so it hangs good and strong there."

Beth smiles at that. "You should also put hooks so a person can hang plants or flowers."

Daryl looks to the porch and gives a nod. "I'll let Karen know."

He takes a key from his pocket and unlocks the front door though the door seems so warped and old, she can't imagine that a lock would keep anyone from coming in here if they really wanted to.

"You'll put on a new front door?" She asks.

"Yeah," Daryl nods as they step into the front entry hall. "Karen's got a few samples, but 's up to me to make the final pick."

Beth feels the butterflies momentarily stop their fluttering. "Why do you get final pick?" She asks, knowing that Karen usually makes all of the cosmetic decisions with their flips.

And she holds her breath, waiting for the answer, hoping it's the answer she thinks it is.

"'cause 's my house. I bought it," he states and she bursts into a smile.

"Daryl, that's amazing! I'm so happy for you!" She lets go of his hand so she can throw her arms around his shoulders. She hugs him tightly and she feels him hugging her back, his strong arms squeezing around her waist.

She closes her eyes, reveling in the warmth and strength of his body, and she can feel his nose in her hair, smelling her. She wants to keep hugging, but she also really wants to see the rest of _his_ house and Daryl seems to be able to read her mind.

"C'mon," he says with a final squeeze of his arms around her. "Got a lot to show you and I'm gonna wan' your opinion on all of it."

"Why would it matter what I like? It's your house," she says, but he doesn't answer her.

She would have loved to see the house in the daylight, but with the flashlight and the light from the streetlamps outside, she can see enough. It is a house that was built in the twenties – hardwood floors and a fireplace in the living room to the right of the front entryway and the room has a large window that she walks to with a smile, looking out over the front yard that is just a dust field at the moment.

"It's going to be so beautiful, Daryl," she says, smiling, turning back towards him and he is watching her intently. "I can picture everything."

"How do you picture it?" He asks, soft and almost gruff.

The butterflies are flapping insanely now.

Beth swallows. "I would put the couch here," she says and steps to the space in front of the fireplace. "On cold nights, you can sit here with hot chocolate and watch the fire."

She is quiet and Daryl hasn't stopped looking at her.

"Wha' else?" He prompts.

"The coffee table… here," she points to in front of where the couch would be. "And the armchair here and the bookcase you have would look perfect against this wall."

"I was thinkin' of putting the flat screen above the fireplace," Daryl speaks. "Karen and Ty tell me that people do it all the time and it saves space."

Beth falls quiet, looking at her. Daryl doesn't have a flat screen television. She does.

Her breath catches in her throat, but still, she doesn't want to assume. Maybe he plans on buying a new television to replace the ancient box with rabbit ear antennas that he has.

"Come on," Daryl says. "More to see." He takes her hand again and leads her into the dining room. "You like this fixture?" He asks, shining the flashlight over the fixture that will hang over where the table will be.

Beth looks at it for a moment and then shakes her head. "Not really."

That makes Daryl smile a little. "Good. Can't stand this fixture either."

She laughs a little at that and he leads her into the kitchen next – not that there's much to look at. There's no appliances and the cabinets have been gutted and ripped from the walls.

"I was thinkin' white," Daryl says. "White cabinets and I was thinkin' of usin' the same white subway tiles from the kitchens in the apartments."

Beth takes a little spin around the room. "White would be perfect in here. That way, you can use any colors you want for your towels and accessories."

He smirks a little at that, but doesn't comment. He points to the window instead that is above the sink and overlooks the side of the house. "And the sill's big enough for herbs."

Beth stares at him and doesn't say anything.

Daryl looks towards the back door. "And I'm gonna make sure the back deck is fixed up for cookouts and the backyard is fenced in so Dot's got a good, safe place to play."

"Daryl," Beth manages to whisper his name, but she can't say anything past that.

Daryl turns his head back towards her. "You ain't figured it out yet?" He asks.

Beth wishes there was a counter for her to lean against. "I… I think so, but I…"

Daryl slowly steps towards her and doesn't take his eyes from her. She feels like she can't breathe and she does her best to remind her lungs to inhale and exhale as Daryl comes to a stop right in front of her and she tilts her head up so she can keep looking into his face.

"I'm askin' you and Lucy to live with me in this house and I'm askin' you to marry me."

Beth has never done it before so she can't be exactly sure, but she's pretty sure that she's just swooned. Her head feels light and the floor seems to have shifted beneath her feet.

"That's a lot of questions and you haven't actually asked me any of them yet," she is amazed with herself that she's able to say all of that.

Daryl looks at her and smirks a little and then reaches into his pocket. "How do you wanna do this?" He asks and his brow is furrowed and he looks suddenly very unsure about it all.

"Do what about what?" Her head is still spinning.

"I've got a ring to give you, but I don't know if you want me down on one knee or not. Never proposed before and I don't know what I'm doin'."

"You… a ring?" Beth swears that all oxygen has completely left her body.

Daryl pulls his hand from his pocket and he holds up the ring, pinched between his index finger and thumb. "It ain't that big. I didn't think you'd want some giant rock on your finger, but if you do, I can change it."

"Don't you dare," Beth rapidly shakes her head back and forth as she stares at the ring. It is a silver band with a small, square cut diamond perched on top.

It's beautiful and it's perfect and ever since she was a little girl, she's been imagining her engagement ring and how the man would propose to her. There would be roses and candles and in all of her daydreams, she's never actually seen the man, but that had hardly mattered. As long as the ring and surroundings were beautiful. And he would get down on one knee and profess his undying love for her and ask her to be his wife forever and ever.

But she has grown up so much – in more ways than one – and she doesn't need any of that anymore. She doesn't need roses or candles or a picnic spread out before her that she had been led to by horseback. She just needs this. Daryl, standing with her in a kitchen that's falling down around them.

She just needs Daryl, who loves her and her daughter and there's nothing more in this world that she can ask for more than that.

He takes a deep breath. "Beth, will you mar-" Daryl begins to say, but that's all he gets out because Beth stands on her toes, throws her arms around his neck and kisses him.

…

Clarence Meeks, newest employee of the Burger King in Baker for the past two weeks, stands a little taller when he sees his next customer approaching the counter.

"Welcome to Burger King. Can I take your order?" He asks with a smile.

"Yes," Beth beams back. "Whopper meal, please, with a Dr. Pepper. Clarence, this is my sister, Maggie, and she will have a…"

"Whopper meal for me, too, with a Sprite," Maggie orders with a smile.

Clarence hits the buttons on the register in front of him. "Anything for Lucy?" He then asks, smiling at the baby in the carrier in Beth's hand.

"Not just yet," Beth shakes her head with a smile. "We'll get her some ice cream in a couple of years though," she promises. "And that's for here."

"You got it," Clarence hits one final button and gives them the total and Beth pays.

Maggie takes Lucy's carrier from Beth and the two cups Clarence hands to her so she can go fill them from the soda dispensary and give Beth a moment alone with him.

"I like your uniform," she smiles at him, unable to stop smiling because she's just so proud.

"It's scratchy as hell," Clarence responds, but he's smiling as he does.

"But besides that," she laughs a little. "It's going good?"

"Goin' real good," he nods. "I like the structure. Get here at eleven, leave at six. Class at seven. Go home, go to sleep. Get up and do it all over again."

"And classes?"

He nods again. "Think I might start studyin' law. I've got a big name to live up to." He hesitates for a moment. "You think that's stupid? Someone like me, studyin' law?"

"I don't know exactly what you mean – _someone like you_ – but of course it's not stupid," Beth says. "Someone has to study law and why can't it be you?" She reaches into her purse and pulls out a piece of paper. "I have a friend, Tyreese, and he runs his own business, working on flipping houses and buildings. I mentioned you to him and he could use extra help from time to time. If you want the extra money and don't mind the hard work, I told him that you would give him a call."

She slides the piece of paper across to him and he stares at it for a minute as if afraid to pick it up, but then he finally does, unfolding it and looking down at the name and number written down. He then lifts his eyes to look at her.

Another worker comes and puts down their tray of food.

"It's not appropriate for Burger King Employees to hug customers," Clarence tells her.

Beth laughs a little at that and picks up the tray. "Good thing you know where to find me."

Clarence gives her a smile and Beth turns, heading towards the table Maggie is sitting with Lucy's carrier on the table in front of her, Maggie making faces and the baby smiling at her.

Beth sits down and begins divvying up the food. The sun shining through the large plate windows catches the diamond on her finger and she smiles as she usually does when she looks at it. Maggie looks at her, smiling, and smiles a little herself, too.

"So, will you be getting married in Scott or at the farm?" Maggie asks, chewing on a fry.

Beth shakes her head. "I haven't thought that far ahead. I've honestly just been thinking about my dress. I can't wear white and I have no idea what color I _can_ wear."

Maggie frowns at that. "Why can't you wear white?"

"I love Lucy, but there was only one Immaculate Conception and she's not it," Beth replies.

"You can wear whatever you want to your wedding, Bethy," Maggie informs her. "I'm pretty sure you could wear a pillowcase and Daryl would still stare at you like you're holding the sun. If I ever get married-"

"To Glenn?" Beth teases her.

Maggie continues as if she hasn't heard. "-I'm going to wear jeans and my cowboy hat."

"Well, that's different, Maggie," Beth tells her before taking a sip of Dr. Pepper. "You've always been so much braver than I have ever been."

Maggie stares at her as if she can't quite believe or understand what Beth has just said. She shakes her head and picks up her Whopper to take a bite. "You're out of your damn mind, Beth, if you think that _anyone_ in the world was brave enough to do what you did."

"What? Run away?"

Maggie shakes her head. "Brave enough to get out of a bad situation and make a pretty awesome life for yourself. I don't know if I could have done it."

For her entire life, Beth has always looked up to Maggie. Idolized her. Maggie was always brave and cool and she never cared about what anyone thought about her. She had traits that Beth had always envied because Beth had never seen herself having any of those.

She never would have thought that Maggie would ever admire anything about her.

"Thank you," Beth says softly, slightly stunned, because she's not too sure what else to say. She feels completely unprepared for Maggie actually admiring her.

And Maggie doesn't say anything; she just smiles.

"As your maid of honor, I need to know who Daryl's best man is going to be," Maggie says, swiftly switching topics, a little uncomfortable with so much emotionally open talk.

"His name is Rick, he's the Sheriff for this county and he's ridiculously nice. He's also my boss, so you have to be nice to him," Beth adds.

"What are you talking about, Bethy? I'm _always_ nice," Maggie grins with a swift wink and Beth knows her laugh is too loud inside of Burger King, but she can't help herself.

…

* * *

 **One more chapter to go.**

 **Thank you very much for reading and please take a moment to review!**


	27. Chapter 26

**This kind of almost serves as an epilogue of sorts. I hope you like it because I write domestic Bethyl fluff and that's exactly what this chapter is. Thank you so much for supporting me through another Daryl x Beth story. I can't thank you all enough.**

* * *

…

 **Chapter Twenty-Six.**

Beth shuts down her computer for the day and makes sure all of the papers are filed and her desk drawers are locked before she stands up, grabbing the phone that calls into the guard pod within the jail.

"You heading home, Beth?" The guard who answers asks.

"Yep. You have a wonderful weekend," she smiles and she can see the guard through the several panes of glass that separate intake from where the offenders are kept. She gives him a little wave and the guard smiles to her in return.

Making sure she has everything one more time, Beth then slings her purse over her shoulder, grabs her car keys and heads out of the jail, grateful that it is the weekend. Most days at the jail, she can handle with no problem. She's been doing this job long enough now and she doesn't want to call herself some expert at it, but she thinks she's pretty darn good. No two days are alike and that's what she likes about it. But sometimes, the days wear on her. Like today. She had had to handle intake on seven juveniles who had been brought in with handcuffs on their wrists and sometimes, days like this just made her sad and she couldn't wait for when she was able to leave and go home again.

Mondays are usually bad days, too. There is no intake on the weekends so those who are arrested over the next couple of days and nights have to sit in the jail at the police station until Monday. But Beth's not going to think about that right now. She is not going to let her entire weekend be ruined. Mondays come and go and she always gets through them. Right now, she has two free glorious days and she is going to relish in them.

With her own two children in school, Miranda Morales has begun her own small tailoring business from out of her home and she is such a wonderful woman, volunteering to watch Lucy during the days when both Beth and Daryl are at work. Miranda loves having a little child in her house once again now that her children are a bit bigger and Lucy absolutely loves her as well, loving to help: handing her pins carefully from the tomato pin cushion when Miranda asks for one and helping her chalk off measurements on a pair of pants or a dress she is hemming and Beth knows she never has to worry about her daughter during the hours they're apart.

But today, Daryl had called her an hour earlier, telling her that he's already been to the Morales apartment and has picked Lucy up, taking her home. He finished with work for the day – Tyreese deciding that it was too damn hot and he couldn't have any of them passing out from heat exhaustion – so Daryl was going to take Lucy and head home to start dinner.

Beth is more than ready to get home as well, but first, she makes a quick stop to Milton's drugstore and hurries inside, going straight for the aisle she needs. She looks over the choices for a moment, deciding that she doesn't want to buy the cheapest one, but knowing that she doesn't need the most expensive one either. She finally decides on the brand that she had bought when she had thought her to be pregnant with Lucy three years earlier and had needed it confirmed.

Taking the pregnancy test box from the shelf, she makes a quick detour to the snack aisle and grabs a couple York Peppermint Patties before heading to the front counter, where Milton is standing, counting out a customer's change. When it's Beth's turn, he smiles at her and she smiles in return, setting her purchases down.

When Milton scans the pregnancy test, he looks at Beth with a little teasing smile. "Very interesting," he comments.

"Oh, hush," Beth says, but does so with a smile and Milton smiles wider.

As Beth slides the money across the counter, Milton takes a small brown paper bag to put everything inside so no one can see what she's buying. Once he hands her back her change and receipt, Milton gives her another smile.

"You have a great weekend, Beth," he wishes her.

"I hope so," Beth smiles back and then with a wave, she hurries back outside to her car.

Daryl's truck is parked in the driveway of their home and Beth pulls in next to him. The garage door is open, but she doesn't see Daryl and when she gets out of the car, she can hear familiar laughter from the backyard. Sometimes, Beth has these moments, when she pulls into the driveway and looks at their little house. She gets such a wave of disbelief. Is this really her life? Is this really her house where she lives with her husband and daughter?

When she left home three years earlier, she had hoped, but she had never actually thought that things would be as good as they are right now in her life. As perfect.

Instead of going into the backyard first, she climbs the front steps and enters the house. It must really be hot outside because Daryl has actually turned on the air conditioner.

Beth heads up the stairs to hers and Daryl's bedroom. Lemon is lying in the middle of their bed and he lifts his head and gives a lazy flick of his tail when he sees her. Beth smiles and stops to give him a quick rub behind his ear and he gives her an appreciative purr. She then continues on into the small attached bathroom to put the pregnancy test box in the cabinet beneath the sink for the time being. She'll take it later tonight once Lucy is in bed, sleeping.

Leaving the bathroom, Beth goes to the closet to kick off her heels, but she leaves her dress on. With it so hot outside, wearing dresses just feel better. She places the York Peppermint Patties onto the top of her dresser and then heads back downstairs.

Daryl hadn't spared an expense when he, Tyreese and Karen worked on the house's renovation. He asked Beth's opinion on everything and found out the things she wanted in her dream home – even though she told him more than once that she didn't _need_ a claw-foot bathtub in the bathroom or a Dutch backdoor in the kitchen, but he had listened to her only to ignore her and give her exactly those things.

The three had also restored as much of the original woodwork as they could – the dark polished wood all throughout the house now and they had even been able to save the small original stained glass window in the hallway at the bottom of the stairs. It is such a beautiful home. Beth doesn't doubt that it's probably the most beautiful home in Scott, if not in all of Georgia. Daryl had worked months on it, making sure that it was absolutely perfect before he even thought of giving the okay for Beth and Lucy to leave the apartment and move in.

But that's who her husband is. He is protective of both her and their daughter to the point of nearly acting like a crazy person.

Beth heads through the kitchen, seeing that the bottom portion of the back Dutch door is closed, but the top portion is open, allowing the early evening sun to shine through, making a warm square patch on the wood floor and the oven timer is counting down to something.

She follows the laughter outside and stepping onto their back deck, she smiles instantly.

With the heat, Daryl has pulled Lucy's plastic little swimming pool from the garage and filled it with water and has changed her into her pink swimming suit. The two-year-old now splashes around and laughs as she has the time of her life and Daryl stands, watching her closely. He has even put orange floaties on her arms to make sure she doesn't drown in the ten inches of water.

"Mama!" Lucy exclaims the instant she sees her. Daryl lifts his head, too, and smiles when he sees her and Beth smiles at them both, coming down the steps and stepping into the warm grass with her bare feet. "Mama!" Lucy exclaims again as Beth gets closer, slapping the water and kicking her legs before gripping the side of the pool, pulling herself up to her feet.

"Hi, baby girl," Beth smiles, stepping into the pool. The water is a bit warm from being out in the sun, but it is still refreshing, and not caring about her dress, she bends down and hoists Lucy up in her arms. "Did you have a good day today?"

"Good!" Lucy nods her head eagerly and Beth laughs a little, kissing her on the cheek, before returning her down to her feet. She holds onto her hands strongly as Lucy then begins hopping up and down as best as she could in the water, laughing as she splashed.

Beth lifts her head to find Daryl watching them both.

"And how was your day?" She asks him with her smile.

Daryl shrugs. "I was fine. Tyreese was the one who wouldn' stop bitchin' 'bout the heat."

Beth laughs a little at that. "Well, I'm glad he was. I don't need you passing out."

"Dixon men don't pass out," he grumbles with no bite and she laughs again. "And how was your day?" He then asks, his hands moving out when Lucy lets go of Beth's hands and plops down in the water, giggling to herself as she makes a splash.

And even though work _had_ been pretty awful that day, that's not what she's thinking about. She's thinking about the pregnancy test upstairs in the cabinet beneath the sink and she's unable to stop the wide smile from spreading across her face. She hopes she is pregnant – she _feels_ like she is – but if she's not, it will be the perfect opportunity to talk with Daryl about her wanting another baby.

Since they have gotten married, they've actually never had that conversation. He is Lucy's dad in every sense of the word and he loves her more than anything and he's such a fantastic father, but Beth actually doesn't know if he wants another baby. When it had just been her, alone and pregnant and just trying to get through the days, Beth had never even thought of having another baby; just wanting to get through having this one first. But now, with a husband and this life, she doesn't want Lucy to be an only child.

Beth very much wants to have Daryl's babies.

Her smile is enough answer for Daryl and he smiles a little bit in response.

"Good," he says and then glances towards the back door. "Did you see how much time was left on the oven?"

"A few more minutes."

"A'right. You watch this one. I'll go in and set up for dinner," he says and she nods.

He steps to the pool's edge, close to her, and leans in, his hand sliding onto her cheek. She is still smiling as his lips go to hers and he finally gets the chance to kiss her hello. The telephone begins ringing from inside, but Daryl doesn't walk any faster towards the back steps to reach it.

Beth gathers her skirt so it doesn't hang completely in the water as she crouches down, smiling as Lucy scoops her hands around a little bug that has flown into the water and the baby – toddler now – chatters away to it as she then gently deposits it outside of the pool.

She has the thought about fifteen times a day.

Lucy is the best thing she's ever done.

And thank goodness that she looks like her with blonde hair and blue eyes. She had been so nervous that there would be traces of Aiden in her and maybe there will be someday; when she's older and more of her personality will be formed. Maybe there will be mannerisms that will make Beth stop in her tracks because it will be _so_ Aiden, but for now, Beth doesn't worry because there is only one father that Lucy has ever known and hopefully, that is the father that Lucy will take after instead.

"Show me your hands, Dot," Beth smiles and the girl giggles as she holds them out. "You've become a little prune," Beth then says, taking a gentle hold of the girl's wrinkled fingertips and Lucy laughs as Beth kisses them. "Let's get out so we can eat some dinner. You can swim again tomorrow," Beth promises her, standing straight.

Lucy pouts at that, but she takes hold of Beth's hands and Beth helps her to her feet. She then lifts the girl back into her arms and kisses her cheek again. Lucy's pout disappears and she smiles and her fingers begin playing with the delicate chain of the heart pendant that is hanging around from Beth's neck that day.

Inside the kitchen, Daryl is pulling a casserole dish from the oven and he has already set plates out for him and her at the table and has Dot's high chair pulled up as well. Beth puts Lucy down on her feet and gently pulls her orange floaties off her arms.

"My big strong man making dinner for me," Beth teases him with a smile and Daryl just smirks, carrying the dish over to the table, setting it down on the potholder he had put out.

"I was hungry," Daryl replies and she laughs a little at that.

After taking Lucy upstairs and getting her changed and dried off, she stops to get herself and Daryl glasses of water and Daryl swoops Lucy up, the girl laughing in delight, and he kisses her on the cheek as he settles her down in her high chair.

"Who was on the phone?" Beth asks once they are all settled and Beth begins serving the creamy chicken and rice casserole Daryl has thrown together for dinner that evening.

"Lori. Jus' wanted to make sure we're still comin' Sunday," Daryl says.

"She's so silly. Of course we're coming. We can't miss Judith's birthday party," Beth replies.

"Judy!" Lucy exclaims upon hearing her best friend's name.

"Michonne and I have already promised that we'll even be over early to help Lori decorate," Beth says and Daryl smirks a little, shaking his head.

"Girl's turnin' four. Love her, but 's not like 's a national holiday or somethin'," Daryl comments before pushing another forkful of food into his mouth.

Beth looks at him with a raised eyebrow and amused smile. "Oh, really?" She asks. "I'm pretty sure I remember a petting zoo being in our backyard not that long ago…"

"That was different," Daryl says, leaning back in his chair, taking his glass of water with him and it's obvious to Beth that he's trying not to smile. "Dot only turns one once."

Beth just smiles, almost laughing at that, and she shakes her head before leaning in and wiping Lucy's face with the bib hanging around her neck. Daryl is amazing – both as a father and a husband – and she can't wait to tell him about the pregnancy test. He'll be happy. She knows he will be. But still, she can't help, but feel a _little_ nervous about it.

…

Their night is how their nights usually are. They eat dinner and then clean up and then get Lucy ready for bed, giving her a bath and changing her into her pajamas and since it's Friday, she stays up a little later than she normally would. They sit on the couch in the living room – the L-shaped couch Beth had bought from Salvation Army when she first moved here – and they watch a movie. Always Disney and Lucy always falls asleep in the middle of it.

Beth carries her upstairs as Daryl stays behind, turning off lights and locking up the house for the night. When he comes upstairs as well, Beth is already in their bedroom, changing from her dress into her pajamas and Daryl stops into Lucy's room to kiss her goodnight.

"You're actin' weird tonight," Daryl informs her as he steps into their bedroom.

"That's usually my line," Beth laughs. She then turns away from the mirror where she is brushing her hair. "How am I acting weird?"

Daryl shrugs, sitting down on the edge of the bed to pull off his socks. "You're smilin' at yourself like you got some joke you're tellin' on me, but won't tell me what it is."

Beth sets her brush down and then goes to him. She comes to stand between his knees, brushing back some of the hair from his face that is hanging in his eyes, and Daryl lifts his hands to rest on her hips, warm and heavy through her tee-shirt.

"I went to the drugstore after work," she begins, figuring that she should just jump into it without dancing around it. Daryl is so direct and she knows he'll appreciate her being so right now. "And I bought a pregnancy test."

Daryl's hands instantly tighten on her hips. "Are you?" He asks her, staring up at her and Beth is trying to determine whether he's happy about this or possibly petrified.

She shakes her hands. "I haven't taken it yet."

"Well, what the hell are you waitin' for?" Daryl asks. "Get your ass in that bathroom, girl, and pee," he says and gently swats her ass, making her laugh. She leans down and she kisses him before she steps away from him to go do just that, her stomach fluttering and her heart in the base of her throat.

She stops though in the doorway between their bedroom and bathroom and she looks back to him. Daryl looks at her, too, and he stands up from the bed.

"I love you very much, Daryl Dixon," she decides to tell him as if he has any doubt.

"I love you, too, Beth Dixon," he replies without any hesitancy on his part; not that Beth was expecting him to hesitate as if he had to think his response through. He is staring at her intently and he gives her the slightest of smiles – his usual smile – and Beth beams back.

She knows he loves her. She knows now that she never knew what love was before Daryl, but as strange as it sounds, getting pregnant and getting her heart broken were the absolute best things to ever happen to her. It led her here, to Scott, and to Daryl and this is where she was always meant to be.

"Now get your ass in there and pee," Daryl tells her again and again, Beth laughs as she turns, going into the bathroom.

…

 **The End.**

* * *

 **Thank you so much for reading and please take a moment to review one last time!**


End file.
